


Arrancar Rehabilitation Program

by xXRoseHeartsXx



Category: Bleach
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:22:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 58,444
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25248373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xXRoseHeartsXx/pseuds/xXRoseHeartsXx
Summary: Kisuke Urahara recieved a mysterious summons from the Soul Society, requesting his services. Here, in a prison cell, is the supposedly deceased Ulquiorra Cifer. Kisuke takes it upon himself, driven by the guilt of the Hogyoku, to assist as many willing Arrancars as possible. Ulquiorra is given a second chance at life...but does he really have a reason to live?
Relationships: Grimmjow Jaegerjaques/Nelliel Tu Oderschvank, Ulquiorra Cifer/Inoue Orihime
Comments: 26
Kudos: 80





	1. Wake from the Dead

**Author's Note:**

> An alternate universe fic that takes place at the end of Aizen's defeat, during the timeskip. I will use lore from the movies, manga, some filler arcs, and light novels, making assumptions for any gaps left by the manga itself.

It was dark. Not that darkness was that unusual. In fact, complete darkness seemed to be the only familiar thing anymore. Complete darkness was devoid of sight, sound, and feeling, creating an amazing sense of bliss.

_Yet…why does it feel so painful?_

Glass shattered. Ulquiorra slowly opened his eyes as he stepped onto the cold stone floor. The only lights in this place were a strange turquoise luminescence, coming from what looked like large tubes lines up against the wall. Liquid gushed from behind him, spilling this glowing substance beneath him. He had broken free from one of these tubes, where he had been suspended naked.

_Where am I? How am I here? I thought I was-_

His thoughts were interrupted by his lungs emptying themselves of the liquid, him coughing and sputtering. He clung to the broken edge of the glass tube for balance.

Once he was able to breathe, he pulled his hand from the broken glass. His palm was split open, blood rushing from the gash and down his pale white arm. The cut soon began to heal with his regeneration.

Ulquiorra wandered down this eerie dark hallway full of the tubes. The farther he walked, the more the scenery changed. There were boxes and tables filled with various unidentifiable objects, to which puzzled him. _What is their purpose?_ He thought, picking up a rather sharp looking contraption and examining it. _What is the purpose of this place?_

He finally came across another room in this strange place. There was simply a wooden desk and chair in this room, a futon against the far wall, and above it hung several pictures of the same person, all with pins or other sharp objects stabbed into the face. Everything was covered in a thick layer of dust. There were no windows in the room, which made Ulquiorra come to the conclusion he was underground somewhere.

Ulquiorra approached the futon and the wall full of pictures. He carefully pulled one of the least maimed photos off of the wall to try and grasp the identity of the person in them. It was a man with messy blonde hair, and a large grin on his face. Ulquiorra tried to remember where he had seen him before, but his brain felt fuzzy…and tired.

He was cold. Every muscle in his body ached with a deep suffering pain. His head throbbed, and his vision was beginning to blur. All he wanted to do was curl up and sleep. The futon seemed so inviting and warm. Against his better judgement, fully succumbing to his weakness, he curled up in the futon and fell asleep.

* * *

Kisuke Urahara was quite the wildcard for the Soul Society. He was branded wrongfully as a traitor, alongside others who deserved a better fate, and hid from their watchful eyes for well over a century. He had every reason to be angry with them. But, he did everything in his power to help the Soul Society when they needed it most, and often would be hospitable to Soul Reapers in need. The Soul Society kept wracking up its debts to Kisuke, and some people within it became increasingly worried with every favor they asked of him.

"My question is, Head captain, why did we bring in Urahara for this? Why not me? I am more than capable!" said the Captain of Squad 12, Kurotsuchi.

Kisuke, who had been summoned to a meeting with the 13 court guard squad captains, tried to contain his laugh at the "mad scientist" before him. He covered his face with the hand fan he carried around with him and peered over at Head Captain Yamamoto.

"Because Kisuke Urahara created the hogyoku and understands details of Aizen's work the best," Yamamoto stated.

"Aw you flatter me," Kisuke said with a grin. "But I only created half the hogyoku. Although, I really don't think it would be that much trouble for me to figure out his work for myself."

"The man knows what he's doing, I can vouch for that," came the voice of Squad 5 captain Shinji Hirako.

"We should just end the problem instead of putting our trust in him!" said SoiFon, Captain of Squad 2.

Yamamoto raised his voice. "You will trust in Urahara's decisions and actions regarding this issue, regardless of your personal feelings. We will not have more issues caused by Sosuke Aizen plague the Soul Society, so we must tread cautiously! You are dismissed!"

Kisuke sure didn't miss those meetings. Come to think of it, wasn't he late for the first one he ever went to? He smiled and laughed to himself. At the end of it all, he didn't really miss being a captain all that much. Of course, he regretted leaving the Research and Development department in the hands of Kurotsuchi, but one can't have everything they want in life could they? At least now he was free to experiment and create what he wanted, when he wanted now, and act on his own terms. No need to wait for orders or a bunch of laws or paperwork to be done to take the course of action he deemed best.

His walk to Squad 2 was a lengthy one, but he preferred to take his time. He liked to relish the fact that he was allowed in the Soul Society again. His charges had been lifted, of course, not only due to the exposure of Aizen, but also due to central 46 having been brutally slaughtered by the aforementioned individual.

* * *

Squad 2 had hardly, if at all, changed. They immediately let him inside once he was recognized, and he headed for a very familiar place…

Squad 2's containment, the Maggot's Nest.

Deep within the prison, behind several layers of kido, contraptions, and sekiseki, was a single prisoner. This prisoner was bound tightly to the wall, unable to move. Yet, they did not resist. They only hung there, the life gone from their eyes, as if they had given up the will to live.

Kisuke took it all in for a moment, before cautiously stepping into the cell with this prisoner.

The prisoner, unaccustomed to visitors, looked up. The eyes were deep, green, and held a suffocating sadness, as if they were in constant suffering and pain. The marks running down his face, appearing like tear stains, weren't helping. He looked almost like a sad puppy, Kisuke decided.

Kisuke put on a smile. "Hello there. I'm Kisuke Urahara."

The prisoner blinked, then spoke. "I recognize you."

"I don't think we ever fought, Ulquiorra, but I've heard quite a bit about you," Kisuke replied.

Ulquiorra's expression remained unchanged. "From whom? That boy Kurosaki?"

Kisuke detected the slightest bit of malice in his voice, so he made a note to avoid the Ichigo subject. "Oh no. Different source. But anyway, I came here to-"

"Was it…Orihime?"

Kisuke raised his eyebrows. Neither Orihime or Ichigo had mentioned Ulquiorra having a soft spot for the red headed girl. Ulquiorra's voice had made a sudden, subtle soft change when he mentioned her name. "So...what if it was?" Kisuke tested.

"What…did she say?" Ulquiorra asked.

Kisuke kneeled down on the floor in an attempt to get comfortable. He was going to be there a while. He smiled mischeviously. "Why do you wanna know?"

Ulquiorra glared at him.

Kisuke waved his hand dismissively. "We've gotten off the subject anyway. I came here with a little proposition for you."

Ulquiorra said nothing.

Kisuke sighed. "My first question is: do you have any idea what happened in the past few months?"

Ulquiorra shook his head slowly, his brows slightly furrowed showing a bit of confusion.

"Well, here goes…" Kisuke said, launching into the shortest possible summary of the war with Aizen he could muster, without leaving out crucial information that would perhaps confuse the poor arrancar even more. Of course, he neglected to mention Ichigo's total loss of power, or Ichigo's heroic prowess, despite Kisuke himself bursting with pride over the latter fact. Ulquiorra's expression remained unchanged through the entire monologue, not once interrupting. It was only when Kisuke finally finished speaking did he show any kind of response.

"So…Lord Aizen was defeated." Ulquiorra's gaze was empty, fixed on Kisuke, but it was as if he was looking at something incredibly far away.

"How does this make you feel, Espada number four?" Kisuke asked, the tiniest of smirks creeping up on the corners of his mouth.

"Nothing. With his loss he is no longer our leader. I expect whoever is the strongest left in Las Noches will be the arrancar's commander…" he paused. "…that is if there are any still alive." He closed his eyes. "The Espada were of Aizen's invention. I am no longer in his service, and therefore hold no such title. The number rankings are now deemed worthless."

"Well, what are you gonna do now Mr. Arrancar?" Kisuke asked. "You were quick to drop 'Lord' from Aizen's name, weren't you?"

"Rot for eternity in this prison," said Ulquiorra. "I am still a hollow, and a Soul Reaper's enemy."

"Well technically I'm not really a Soul Reaper anymore," Kisuke grinned. "Which is why I came to see you." He stood up and shook out his legs. The floor was uncomfortable and had caused his shins to go numb.

"How'd you like a second chance, Mr. Ulquiorra Cifer?"

* * *

Ulquiorra had been listening without much investment to Urahara's story, or discussion. In reality, he had given up. The longer he had hung there in that prison, the less and less he even cared. His loyalty to Aizen? Shattered as far as he was concerned. He had served his purpose up until his death, and had failed to protect Las Noches. He had failed his former master, unable to fulfill his duty. He was disgraced. Yet, upon hearing of Aizen's defeat, Ulquiorra was almost relieved, if not a tiny bit unsettled.

Ulquiorra blinked at Urahara's last comment. "E-excuse me?" He asked.

"I said, 'do you want a second chance?'" Urahara restated.

"Second chance? For what? What does a Soul Reaper want with an arrancar?" Ulquiorra inquired.

Urahara sighed and placed a hand on his striped hat. "Probably a hard concept for you to understand but...I wanna help you guys out. I feel…almost responsible for you."

Ulquiorra had no reason to object. The prison cell he was in was far from his idea of perfect nothingness. There was just enough stimulation in this dismal cell that this had been nothing but torment for him. He had no rights, nor did he really desire any. He had never had any sort of the thing under Aizen. He was simply a tool, made to follow orders. Ulquiorra was all right with this arrangement, as it had given him a sense of purpose, even though he could find none for himself.

"You would become my new master?" Ulquiorra asked.

Urahara laughed. "Well...I don't really wanna think of it that way, but if it's what you wanna call it, sure." He walked a few steps closer to the sealed Ulquiorra. "So, are you in?"

"I don't have a choice," Ulquiorra said quietly.

Urahara placed his hands on the cell wall and began to unseal the arrancar from his bonds.

"Nope."


	2. Gloomy Skies

Orihime Inoue was probably the kindest, bravest, and most resilient girl at her school. Yet, she had an unfortunate habit of bottling up her problems and not asking her friends for help, out of fear they would worry too much about her. Seeing others suffer hurt far worse than any suffering she had experienced herself in her life. All she wanted was to help people, and for them to never experience pain the way she had.

"Heya Earth to Orihime!"

Orihime was startled from her melancholy gaze out the second story window of their classroom, watching the rain fall in large droplets from the sky. She turned her head to see her best friend Tatsuki, who had poked her in the shoulder.

"Ah! Tatsuki! What is it?" Orihime asked.

"It's…lunch time Orihime," Tatsuki reminded her. "Usually that's your favorite time of day. You almost never forget it. You've been staring out the window for the past ten minutes!"

Orihime's eyes widened. "Really? It didn't feel that long at all. Anyway lets see what I brought for lunch today-oh." She rummaged through her bag, then looked up at Tatsuki with a red face. "I…I forgot to pack one. Aha silly me…"

"You? Forget your lunch?" Tatsuki asked in wonder. "Well…anyway my mom packed me a ton so you can have some of my lunch then."

Tatsuki handed Orihime a spoon, while she took a pair of chopsticks that were attached to her lunchbox. "Are you feeling okay? You've been a bit more…I dunno, scattered than usual."

Orihime didn't know how to answer that question. "Oh no, I'm fine Tatsuki. I've been staying up too late reading manga again. Don't you worry about me! I'll be just fine."

Tatsuki didn't seem to be satisfied, but she just shrugged her shoulders. "If you say so," she replied, shoving a bite of food into her mouth.

The truth, of course, was that Orihime definitely was not feeling okay. She wasn't sure what it was, but she had been feeling rather depressed since Aizen's defeat. Almost like she had lost something important, but she couldn't quite place what that thing was. She tried to focus her sadness onto her friends who had survived the war alongside her, and had suffered more than she had.

Ichigo had suffered the worst out of all of them. He had the literal weight of the world placed on his shoulders, only to end up sacrificing the power he had worked so hard to achieve in order to save humanity. Orihime had tried to cheer him up, but it was to no avail. For months Ichigo did nothing by lie in his bed, as slowly his spiritual awareness disappeared. He lost all interest in hanging out with his friends or doing anything extracurricular, instead going to school and returning home almost like a zombie. Orihime's efforts had been turned away so many times, she would cry herself to sleep, alone in her small apartment.

Orihime stole a look towards Ichigo on the other side of the classroom. He barely touched the food his sister had lovingly packed for him. He was sitting alone, Uryu a watchful distance. A small, bitter smile crept onto her face. Uryu had been able to at least help Ichigo the most out of all the friends by taking over his hollow killing responsibilities. Uryu was just as concerned as Orihime, and the girl knew this to be true, even though he didn't show it.

After school, Orihime began her dreary walk home. The rain really had picked up now, and she had left her umbrella at her apartment that morning. She sighed and pulled her jacket over her head to at least keep some of the rain off. She stopped by the convenience store for some packages of ramen for dinner, not wanting to put much effort into cooking.

She was soaking wet by the time she got home, water dripping onto her floor. She kicked off her shoes and stumbled inside. At least the ramen was wrapped in plastic, so the noodles weren't going to be soggy. She quickly changed clothes and hung up her uniform to dry before setting some water to boil in her kettle. She'd take a bath after dinner, she decided, pulling garlic butter out of the fridge, intending to top her shrimp flavored ramen with it. Butter was truly the best food known to man, and made almost anything taste better.

She sat at her table with her food, gave thanks for her meal, and dug in. She smiled up at the picture of Sora she had displayed. She missed him, but she knew he was in Soul Society somewhere, finally at peace and no longer subject to being tormented by his Hollow.

She lifted her bowl to drink the broth at the bottom, and exhaled with satisfaction after the warm, yummy liquid hit her stomach.

"Time for a bath!" she said to herself. She often did so to prevent herself from sinking into her true feelings, which came to the surface the easiest when she was alone.

* * *

"Good morning class! I have an exciting announcement to make."

Orihime actually remembered to pack a lunch this morning, be it a hasty one. She had some premade rice balls sitting in her fridge, which she packaged up along with a bottle of chocolate milk. It wasn't glorious but it would be tasty, as well as not make Tatsuki worry so much about her.

The class's homeroom teacher, Ms. Ochi, was standing with her hands on her hips in front of the chalkboard.

"We have a new student joining out class today!"

Orihime smiled. A new friend! Maybe that's just what she needed to help her get out of this current mood she's been having.

The new student entered the room on queue. He was short for a male student, but not as short as some of the girls. His uniform was neatly put together, all pieces accounted for and neatly pressed, making Orihime feel a bit self conscious of her slightly wrinkled shirt. His skin was pale, his silky dark hair contrasting beautifully against it. His face was handsome, but had some soft feminine qualities to it. Yet…his most striking feature was his large and brilliant green eyes.

His hands were in his pockets, his posture correct but not rigid. He had this air of confidence about him that made Orihime's heart start to beat a little faster.

As if he knew the thoughts going through her head, his eyes glanced in her direction, meeting hers.

Orihime's heart jumped, and she blushed and looked away.

_Those eyes_ …she thought, but banished the thought from her head.

"My name is Komori Kuroda," the new student announced. His voice was deep, monotone, and soft. He wrote the corresponding kanji on the blackboard upon Ms. Ochi's request.

Orihime stared at her desk. She didn't dare look up at him again. _Silly Orihime, making assumptions where you shouldn't_ , she scolded herself.

She shuddered when the fabric of Komori's sleeve brushed past her when he went to take a seat.

* * *

"So…Komori is it?" Keigo had immediately approached their new classmate once school had ended for the day.

Komori said nothing, not even acknowledging Keigo's existence, and walked out the classroom door.

"Oh my gosh! Isn't he cute?" "Yeah, hes so cute he probably could be in a boy band!" "He looks foreign! Do you think he's foreign?" The girls in the classroom had gathered to discuss their new classmate.

One of them turned to Orihime. "I saw him looking at you!" She said.

Orihime, who had been watching a bird out the window, looked over at the girls. "Ah…hah I don't know what you mean."

Chizuru, one of Orihime's classmates, came up behind the girl and hugged her. "Oh no! Some filthy new boy is making oogly eyes at my Orihime?! Unnacceptable! I shall be the one to take her-"

"WOULD YOU KNOCK IT OFF!?" Tatsuki yelled, pushing Chizuru off of Orihime. "But yeah I agree. That new guy kept stealing looks at her all day. What's the big deal anyway?"

"Its gotta be the boobs," said another girl.

Tatsuki decided to push Orihime out of the classroom to prevent any further harrassment.

They walked down the hallway for a bit in silence, until Tatsuki spoke.

"You look like you've seen a ghost-figuratively speaking. I know we actually can see them," Tatsuki said.

Orihime shook her head. "Oh! Uh…it's nothing. Just…" She looked down at her feet while they walked. "Our new classmate. He reminds me of someone."

Tatsuki raised her eyebrows. "Who?"

Orihime stopped walking. She looked up and smiled as warmly as she possibly could. "Oh its nothing! Really. I met him on one of my adventures, haha silly me."

Tatsuki sighed. "I'd drill you for answers more but I gotta head to practice. See yah Orihime. Be careful, got it?"

Orihime watched Tatsuki walk away, a sinking feeling growing larger in her chest.

She made her way home, glad that it was simply overcast today and not soaking her with rain. She felt a bit better, and wanted to actually cook something for her dinner this time. As she approached her apartment complex, she heard a voice behind her.

"Orihime Inoue."

Orihime spun around.

Komori emerged from behind a building, making it clear that he had been following her. Orihime's heart began to pound as the man slowly approached her. "W-what do you want?"

Komori said nothing, until he had closed the gap between them, leaving only a couple of feet of distance.

Orihime's heart caught in her throat. She mentally prepared herself to summon her Shun Shun Rikka, but something in Komori's eyes told her he wasn't there to harm her.

Komori simply lifted his right hand, palm stretched out towards her, his eyes pleading desperately for something only she could give him.

* * *

"Now that you're officially on Team Urahara, let's get some things in order."

Ulquiorra, dressed in the white prisoner clothing assigned to him, was kneeling on the floor of Urahara's shop. Urahara talked so much that Ulquiorra had almost no need to speak, save for the few questions he was required to ask.

"First!" Urahara announced. "Very important rule. Don't kill anyone. Humans and soul reapers. Causing property damage is also highly discouraged." He sat cross legged on the floor across from Ulquiorra. "Second, you can't go telling humans about our existence. It would ruin the balance of things. Third…" he grinned. "…let's figure out what it is exactly you wanna do."

There was an awkward silence. Urahara sighed. "That was your queue, Mr. Arrancar."

Ulquiorra blinked.

"Do you have any desires at all? Any? It can be stupid for all I care. Just something to get things started," Urahara said.

Ulquiorra's chest suddenly squeezed at the thought of a memory that flooded into his mind. The beautiful, warm creature that his eyes had the fortune of beholding as he faded away. The…concept she taught him, the thing he only remotely began to understand just as his life had ended. "Heart," he murmured.

"What was that?" Urahara asked.

Ulquiorra looked up. "I wish to see the girl Orihime Inoue."

Urahara's brow furrowed. "Well you see…that's gonna be difficult."

"I do not see why that is-"

"I mean, I'm trying to not hurt your feelings here Mr. Arrancar but I'm pretty sure you've traumatized the poor girl. Oh and her friends wouldn't be too thrilled to see you either," Urahara said bluntly.

"I am no longer in service to Aizen, so their fear and distaste is irrational," Ulquiorra pointed out.

Urahara sighed. "You know I didn't want to make you tell me this but…tell me about this girl. Why do you want to see her so badly?"

Ulquiorra thought for a while to try and put his experience with Orihime into words. Instead, he finally resorted to ripping out one of his eyes and crushing it, allowing Urahara to witness his experiences. Urahara seemed all too impressed with Ulquiorra's regenerative capabilities, which seemed to still be in working order despite his depleted reiatsu levels.

Afterwards, Urahara agreed to help Ulquiorra come up with a plan to see Orihime. His plan eventually came into being that Ulquiorra could attend Orihime's high school, posing as a human. Urahara had connections to get...less than legal documentation for Ulquiorra, complete with birth certificate and ID. On top of those efforts, it took over a week for Urahara to complete a special gigai, which Ulquiorra was expected to wear nearly all the time. Ulquiorra hardly objected.

"Do you like it?" Urahara said, presenting the gigai somewhat proudly. "This will allow humans to see you. It also will keep that nasty Hollow reiatsu from attracting too much trouble to you. You'll appear like an ordinary human, to both spirits and other humans."

"Am I able to use any abilities while in it?" Ulquiorra inquired.

Urahara sighed. "No, but to be honest you probably don't have much abilities left anyways. If you haven't noticed, you don't have a zanpakto anymore. Squad 2 said that when they found you, you were completely naked without anything on you." He snickered a little bit.

Ulquiorra examined the features of the gigai. It…looked like him. Sort of. It had more life to its skin color, and was void of any hollow markings, such as his lip color and the lines running down his cheeks. The head had no hollow mask, which prompted Ulquiorra to cautiously touch the left side of its head.

"I tried to make a guess to what you looked like when you were alive," Urahara explained.

"I do not recall that," Ulquiorra said. "I doubt many of us remember, if at all, being human." He closed his eyes, a question bugging him. "Do you have any idea how I am still alive right now? Surely that boy informed you I was defeated to the point of turning to dust."

Urahara's brow furrowed. "I intend to look into that. Unfortunately I don't have any answers right now for you." He sighed. "Come on, let me show you how to put this on."


	3. First Day of School

"Get up sleepyhead! Can't have you sleeping all day can we?"

Ulquiorra opened his eyes in annoyance to Urahara's voice. He didn't know why, but ever since his imprisonment he had been incredibly tired, and often would nearly collapse. He took to sleeping unusual amounts to try and restore his energy, but to no avail.

"You'll be late for breakfast," Urahara continued, opening the blinds of Ulquiorra's small stuffy room to let the bright sunlight in.

_Breakfast?_ "Oh. A meal." Ulquiorra raised to his feet. He was still dressed in his prison robes, not bothering to wear the spare dark green jinbei Urahara had offered him. "Don't bother. Arrancar do not need to eat."

Urahara tilted his head to one side. "Did they not feed you in prison?"

"I would assume they would know not to," Ulquiorra replied. He began to sway, and balanced himself against the wall.

Urahara started laughing. "Oh no…no wonder your reiatsu is next to nothing! You're starving to death!"

Ulquiorra's expression actually wavered into one of shock.

"Hollows in Hueco Mundo do not require nutrients, unless they are of the more powerful variety," Kisuke explained. "The Menos generally consume other hollows on their way to becoming a Vasto Lordes, but when Aizen turned you into perfect Arrancar, you stopped the ability for growth, and thus maintained your energy through the plentiful reishi that Hueco Mundo provides."

"Which is why I do not need to eat," Ulquiorra stubbornly insisted.

"Does this look like Hueco Mundo to you?" Urahara pointed out. "Either you're an idiot or you're just being stubborn about having to resort to human behaviors."

Ulquiorra's brown furrowed. "Fine. I will…consume this food."

The table was set with five places. At each place was a single bowl, a teacup, and a spoon. Urahara motioned for Ulquiorra to kneel at the place next to his around this round table, just as two people burst from the other room.

"Good morning," said a small waif of a girl with large dark eyes. She was wearing pink, and was carrying a large plate in her arms. A large man was following close behind her, carrying a large lidded pot in his hands.

The duo set down the items, and the man sat down next to Urahara, but the girl jumped up and exclaimed "oh, the tea!" And rushed back into the kitchen.

"I don't believe we've formally met," said the large man. "My name is Tessai, and you must be Ulquiorra."

"I don't see any other arrancar here," Ulquiorra said.

Urahara snickered. "Oh good it seems you do have some sense of humor." The girl returned and set down a teapot, then took her seat. There still was an empty spot, but this didn't seem to bother the group.

They folded their hands around the table and gave some kind of thanks. Ulquiorra was confused as to this strange ritual, and did not follow suite.

Urahara must have sensed Ulquiorra's hesitation, as he did not serve himself any of the food. "Don't tell me you've never eaten before," he grinned.

Ulquiorra closed his eyes, the first memory of his life coming to him in flashes. He was born with his mask covering his mouth, making him a strange hollow unable to consume. He had never taken a single bite of another hollow, at least that he could remember, and he did not partake in meals in Los Noches. He did drink whatever Aizen provided him, but he did not remember the experience as pleasurable. It was simply…something that Aizen had wanted him to do.

Urahara took it upon himself to serve Ulquiorra some food. "This is rice with egg." He pointed at the contents of the dishes. "You eat it with the spoon. And this is tea. You drink that."

"I know what human food looks like," Ulquiorra said, slightly annoyed as he dipped his spoon into the dish.

The flavor? Not as exciting as Ulquiorra would have thought from this seemingly monumental act. In fact, he felt lile the act of constantly chewing and swallowing to be a bit of a chore. Still, he could feel his stomach filling, and his energy returning, so in an effort to restore himself he ate five servings before Urahara forcibly stopped him.

"Whoa there! There's not gonna be much left for Jinta when he wakes up," Urahara said. "Man…how much reiatsu did you lose?"

* * *

Ulquiorra stared down at his lunchbox that Urahara had given him for school, thinking back on his first experience actually eating a meal, with humans no less. He shoved it away, despite his body protesting. It was such a chore to eat, and he had no interest in doing so at the moment. He was too preoccupied to bother himself with it.

He was sitting at the back of the classroom, and his eyes scanned his classmates. They were happily chatting with each other in various groups; the males seemed to gravitate towards other males, and the females with females. Ulquiorra never had much of a chance to observe normal human behavior, outside of Orihime.

_So this is the environment you come from?_ He thought as his eyes finally rested on Orihime. She was speaking to a handful of girls from their class; the most friendly seemed to be a girl with short black hair. Ulquiorra wished he could speak alone with Orihime, but the amount of people in this class made it impossible. He would have to speak with her after school, where hopefully he can get a moment with her.

He wasn't exactly sure what he was going to say to her when the moment finally came. Should he…ask her a question? What question could he possibly ask? He was having…emotions. Lots of them. He couldn't quite figure out what they were, but they began to cause him physical pain by almost constricting on his chest. _I just want to know more about…your heart…_

The day flew by quicker than Ulquiorra thought it would. He was confused about the subject matter he was expected to learn, and would have to ask Kisuke about it later. While Aizen had taught at least his Espada how to read, he had not really given the arrancar much of an education outside of a combat-oriented one. Ulquiorra had absorbed quite a bit of information mostly from books, which mainly belonged to Aizen himself, who was gracious enough to let the curious Espada borrow them.

After class, students began to ask for "Komori" by name. Ulquiorra wished to avoid these confrontations, and simply left the classroom, ignoring them. He then waited for Orihime to leave, and began following her. She eventually broke away from her friend with the short hair, walking away from the school alone.

_Does she always walk home alone?_ He thought. His eyes glanced towards other people walking about at this time. It wasn't late, but for some reason he was on a bit of an alert. Hollows did not concern him, the girl's powers were strong and most hollows were primitive creatures. It was other humans that concerned him. He knew nothing of how they behaved. They always surprised him, varying in extreme behavior from Aizen to Orihime.

She made it home untroubled, and approached what Ulquiorra recognized as her home. He knew this was the time he should approach her, but his body suddenly began shaking. It became difficult to breathe, and he felt something in his chest start pounding. _Why am I…nervous…?_

He took a deep breath and called out her name.

Orihime stopped and turned around. Her face was frozen, almost in horror. Ulquiorra swallowed. So many questions flooded into his mind, making it impossible for him to form a coherent thought. All he could muster to do it reach out his hand, feeling as helpless as he did the last time he saw her.

The girl hesitated for only a moment before locking her fingers in his. Ulquiorra felt warmth spread from her fingers to his, all the way down his body and into his chest. So this what what it would have felt like…he thought.

The pair said nothing and stood in silence, their eyes locked. Ulquiorra could not bear it any longer, and closed his eyes to focus on the feeling of her warm hand in his.

It was the next moment that shocked him. Orihime, her hand still locked in his, took her free hand and slapped him across the face. Ulquiorra withdrew his hand and opened his eyes in shock.

He placed his hand on his cheek and watched a crying Orihime retreat up the stairs and into her apartment. Ulquiorra could do nothing but helplessly watch her leave him as he nursed the sharp pain he felt. He didn't know why her slap hurt him unusually bad, but he decided it was the gigai, even though the pain in his chest didn't seem related at all.

* * *

"Ulquiorra, dinner's ready," announced Urahara.

Ulquiorra, not bothering to leave his gigai, had done nothing but sit on the floor staring at the wall since his arrival back at the shop. He had kicked off his shoes by the door and dropped his book bag, but had not removed his jacket or uniform. His knees were tucked into his chest, and his chin rested on the folded hands he had placed on his knees. His eyes were dead and lifeless. Being alive meant nothing, he decided. Why should he even try anymore?

Urahara frowned. "Rough day at school, buddy?"

Ulquiorra didn't respond.

Urahara crouched down next to Ulquiorra and poked him on the cheek with his closed fan. "Rejected that hard huh?"

Ulquiorra looked over at the man who had come to bother him. "The girl slapped me."

"My my I didn't think you were that kinda guy, Mr. Arrancar," Urahara smirked. "What on earth did you do to the poor girl?"

"You are so crude," Ulquiorra snapped. "I only said her name." _And held her soft, warm hand…_

"You know maybe?" Urahara said, kneeling down to a more comfortable sitting position from his crouch. "She's kind of still angry about you, I don't know, trying to kill and horrendously maim her friends. Just a guess here."

Ulquiorra felt a peculiar lump rise in his throat. _Stupid malfunctioning gigai_ … "There is no reason for her to be angry. I was only acting upon Aizen's orders. I am no longer under Aizen, so therefor-"

Urahara hit Ulquiorra upside the head with his fan, which was now open. "You're an idiot."

Had this been before Ulquiorra's revival, Urahara would not have survived the former Espada's reaction. But now Ulquiorra's force of will was next to none. "What do I do," he said in a small, quiet voice.

Kisuke stood. "Try apologizing," he suggested as he walked out of the room.

Ulquiorra barely touched his dinner, shoving down a few bites before retiring to his room. He removed his uniform and flopped down onto his futon, staring at the ceiling. The sun was setting, shedding his room in a reddish orange color. The sun unsettled him. He preferred the darkness that Hueco Mundo provided, with only a white moon in the sky. It reminded him of himself: alone against a black nothingness. It's how he felt, at least.

He hadn't bothered to remove his gigai. He had decided he would remain in it as much as possible in order to adjust to it. He was in a strange enviroment, and this gigai almost felt like a safe container. He couldn't see his true self when he looked in the mirror, nor was his hollow hole present. It made him forget that he didn't belong there and it comforted him.

_She was disgusted with me_ , he thought as he rolled over onto his side to stare at the wall. Why did he care so much about her opinion? Was it simply because he was interested in her? Why was he so interested?

He closed his eyes and imagined the warm feeling from holding her hand. That moment of his death, if he had stayed alive for just…a moment longer…

He opened his eyes. It was morning. He had fallen asleep imagining Orihime's warmth. His body felt stiff, so he rolled over and stretched out his arms.

"Oh good you're awake! Wouldn't want you to miss school!" Urahara announced.

_Oh. School._ "School is a daily activity?" Ulquiorra grumbled as he grabbed his uniform. Wonderful. He would have to see Orihime again with this suffocating feeling which made him want to do the exact opposite.

"You know you have to take care of the gigai like its your body," Urahara pointed out. "Please bathe regularly. The shower's over here."

Ulquiorra grimaced. More effort put towards this thing. "Disgusting," he murmured.

"Yes. You are," Urahara said, shoving a towel at Ulquiorra. "You are no better than a child in some areas."

Ulquiorra grabbed the towel roughly, his face hinting at the slightest scowl.


	4. Humans Have to Work

Orihime stared at the outstretched hand in front of her. She tried to breathe normally, but each breath caught in the growing lump in her throat. She didn't understand what she was doing when she locked her hand with his.

Memories of her imprisonment in Hueco Mundo came back to her. Her friends who had come to rescue her suffered greatly because of her. The final, horrible, bloody battle which made Ichigo suffer the worst…

…at the hands of her captor.

Orihime smacked Komori across the face. She retreated as quickly as possible to her apartment and slammed the door behind her.

Her emotions where swirling in her head so fast she couldn't stand. She sunk to the floor, her knees to her chest, and began sobbing.

"There's no way!" Orihime cried. "He's dead. He died…his hand…it…it's just coincidence…"

_Ulquiorra's eyes pleaded with Orihime as he slowly faded into dust. He didn't have the energy to walk, but he had reached a hand out for her with the last bit of consciousness he had left._

_"Do I frighten you, girl?"_

* * *

"Uryu, I need to talk to you."

Uryu seemed a bit surprised at Orihime's request. "Oh? About what?" He asked. It was after school, and they both were the last two left in the handicrafts club room.

Orihime twisted her fingers together. "It's about…the new student Komori…"

Uryu's brow furrowed. "Yes…what little reiatsu he has is…a little odd."

"Uryu he…looks just like Ulquiorra," Orihime said.

The Quincy looked bewildered. "The Espada? The one that captured you?" He placed a hand on his arm, as if recalling it being torn off by the arrancar during their long battle.

Orihime nodded, then shook her head. "I-I know that he's dead and it's not possible but…Komori reminds me of him somehow. He…followed me home yesterday."

"That bastard did what?!" Uryu exclaimed.

"Oh, haha it's okay he didn't do anything," Orihime assured him. "I think he just wanted to talk." She blushed in shame before she admitted what she had done. "I kinda…slapped him."

"Well good. That creep deserved it," Uryu stated as he pushed up his glasses. "From now on I'll walk you home from school, okay Orihime?"

Orihime smiled. "Oh no I don't want to bother you. It's okay I can take care of myself. Really!" She paused. _But what if it really was Ulquiorra somehow? What if…when he died he came back as a human? No, that doesn't sound right. Maybe Komori was a relative of Ulquiorra when he was alive? Maybe…_

But then how did he know about Ulquiorra's last moments?

Orihime covered her face with her hands.

She felt a warm, gentle hand on her shoulder. Uryu had gone out of his comfort zone to console her, to make her feel safe. He was such a good friend, even to Ichigo, even though he often didn't show it.

"I'm walking you home," Uryu stated. "I won't take no for an answer."

* * *

Kisuke set down the device he had in his hands, various tools and parts spread out on his work table. He was prying apart some other component, trying to figure out how it was going to work. He glanced over detailed diagrams he had made, specifying what needed to be done. The last prototype worked only briefly, but he was on the right track.

"Just gotta put this piece here very carefully…" Kisuke muttered to keep himself steady, sticking out his tongue in concentration.

"Yo! Urahara!"

Kisuke, startled, jammed the piece in too tightly. He dropped the prototype again and buried his face into his hands. "Welcome back, Grimmjow."

An arrancar had oh so rudely opened a garganta in Kisuke's work room and stepped out of it. Papers went flying, and some bottles fell off the shelf, crashing onto the ground.

Kisuke turned to face the arrancar in his presence. He was tall, had a constant furrowed brow, and had slicked back and dirty blue hair. He was barely dressed, save for the white hakama Aizen had assigned them, but his were badly tattered and covered with blood stains.

"What did I tell you about opening one of those things in the house?" Kisuke scolded. _These arrancar…are worse than children…_

"Oh. Right," Grimmjow grumbled. He dragged a chair and turned it around, so that the back of it was facing Kisuke, sitting down by straddling it. "Halibel's adjusting well. She's got everything back in order."

Kisuke looked at Grimmjow's clothing. "Still wearing _those_ when you have better clothes?"

"I ain't wearin' human lookin clothes in Hueco Mundo you dumbass," Grimmjow snarled.

"Hmm…well, I have a request for you," Kisuke continued. "I need you to bring Nel here to stay with me until further notice. I'm having some issues with the bracelet prototype and I need her nearby for testing."

Grimmjow's eyes narrowed. "How long are ya gonna keep her here?"

"Oh don't tell me you're worried about her!" Kisuke grinned.

"Gimme a break. The brat saved my life so the least I can do is make sure some asshole doesn't carve her up or something," Grimmjoe replied. "She…already has been mistreated enough." He motioned to his head, where Kisuke knew was where Nel's hideous crack and scar in her hollow mask was located.

"Yes, which is why I am trying to help her," Kisuke said, picking up the prototype.

"I'll stay here with her," Grimmjow stated.

Kisuke raised his eyebrows. "Oh? Really now?"

Grimmjow rubbed the back of his neck. "You're just gonna poke and prod her ya know? And what, would you rather have me or those two idiots who follow her around all the time? I can probably…convince them…that I'm the stronger choice. Besides they're not really keen on you fixing her up to fight. I kinda wanna take her on myself, seeing how she almost flattened Noitra."

"All right, but you've gotta earn your keep here," Kisuke said. "I wanna give Tessai a vacation, but I really need-"

The door opened and Ulquiorra, who had returned from school, walked in the room. "Urahara, I have a question about what algebr-" he stopped and froze when he saw Grimmjow.

"Who the-ULQUIORRA?!" Grimmjow cried, jumping up and knocking over the chair he was previously seated in.

Ulquiorra threw a worried glance in Kisuke's direction.

"At least you recognize him, despite being in a gigai," said Kisuke. "He is part of...the program, Grimmjow, and I don't want any fights breaking out."

"Program?" Ulquiorra asked.

"He calls it somethin' like, arrancar rehab," said Grimmjow. "He's helpin' us for some reason, but not as a Soul Reaper."

"' _Arrancar Rehabilitation Program_ '," Kisuke corrected. "I am helping willing arrancar because…well it's complicated. But, I want to do it because no one else will."

"Don't try to understand," Ulquiorra said to Grimmjow. "I don't follow his logic at all, and most certainly a simple minded creature such as your self wouldn't be able to grasp the concept either."

"At least I'm not an unfeeling, stone faced freak," Grimmjow snarled. "The hell you doin' in a human body anyway? Your reiatsu's next to nothin'!"

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes. "I will speak with you later Urahara. I have homework to do."

* * *

It had been over a week since Ulquiorra had been slapped by Orihime. He tried to think of ways he could apologize, often practicing in front of the bathroom mirror at home, but never seemed to be able to do so in person. He kept coming up with excuses as to why it was a useless attempt. He was satisfied with staying in the same room as her, getting to observe her as she went on her daily routine. He was glad his reiatsu was nonexistent, as it made following Orihime around easier, especially since that damn Quincy seemed glued to her.

Grimmjow and the little arrancar Nel had moved into Urahara's shop. Ulquiorra was only concerned with Grimmjow's destructive nature and worried about what would happen if he had an outburst. Ulquiorra offered to Urahara that he would subdue the former 6th espada if he ever got out of hand, but Urahara only laughed in response. Ulquiorra was furious, once he realized he still was without a sword; Grimmjow still had his.

Tessai had departed on a vacation, Urahara nearly forcing the man out the door. He seemed nervous leaving the management of the shop in the hands of the sleepy Urahara, two children, and a couple of arrancars, but Urahara assured him not to worry. Grimmjow and Ulquiorra mostly were in charge of inventory and stocking, as well as cleaning up with Jinta, while Ururu handled the front of the store. Ulquiorra went to school during the day, and worked at the shop in the evening and on weekends.

"Is this what a human life would be like?" Ulquiorra said to himself as he was stacking heavy boxes.

Grimmjow, who had heard him, finished putting down the large stack of boxes he was carrying. He was wearing a t-shirt and jeans, hiding his hollow hole. If it wasn't for the broken mask on his right cheek, he nearly could pass for a human-if people could see him, that is. "Well if this is what human life is like then it's the most boring crap I've ever experienced," he said as he aggressively stomped on a pile of wooden pallets, splintering the wood and sending one half of it flying.

Ulquiorra casually sidestepped the broken wood headed in his direction. "Perhaps you would like to try school?"

"Oh and work some more around a bunch of weaklings!?" Grimmjow growled.

"I take it back," Ulquiorra said. "You wouldn't last a day. It requires _thinking_ , oh and of course self control which you seem to lack."

"You're talkin mad shit for a dead arrancar with no sword," Grimmjow said as he roughly grabbed Ulquiorra by the collar, lifting him several inches off the ground.

Ulquiorra went limp and said nothing.

"Tch." Grimmjow threw Ulquiorra aside. "The hell is wrong with you anyway? You're not even that creepy cold statue anymore who followed orders blindly. You're like a ragdoll."

Ulquiorra had landed in some splintered wood and gashed his hand. He pulled the wood from his palm, and blood trickled down his arm. He waited for it to heal, but then realized that he was still in his gigai.

Grimmjow picked him up again, this time by the left arm. He was so rough Ulquiorra thought he probably dislocated his shoulder. "And what's with you bein' in this meat suit all the time?"

Ulquiorra sighed. "I simply wear it to adjust to it so that when I am at school it is more comfortable," he replied. Grimmjow seemed satisfied with his answer and let go of his arm, which went limp. Ulquiorra couldn't move it.

"You…probably should get that checked out…" Grimmjow said gruffly. "It would be a real pain if you couldn't help me with the work around here!"

Ulquiorra dragged himself towards Kisuke's workroom.

* * *

"Oh no, Komori! What happened to your arm?"

Ulquiorra had to go to school, his hands bandaged and his left arm in a sling. Urahara gave Grimmjow a huge scolding about "breaking my hard work". He also explained that unfortunately he wasn't skilled in healing arts, and Tessai wouldn't be returning for some time. So, Ulquiorra would have to let the gigai heal naturally, and Urahara provided a sling. The arrancar found this to be an annoyance, and not to mention painful. He had never dealt with having extended injuries that stayed for longer than a few moments, due to his regenerative capabilities. The over the counter medication Urahara gave him wasn't helping much at all.

Some of the girls in class had approached Ulquiorra. He had become a popular subject of gossip, and many of the girls harbored a crush on him. Ulquiorra never knew that he was attractive to humans as a potential mate. It unsettled him.

"Just an accident at work," Ulquiorra said briskly. "I was-"

Ulquiorra's voice caught in his throat when he saw that Orihime had been listening to him intently. Her eyes showed pity for his injuries, a similar expression she gave him when he was dying. He looked away once their eyes had made contact, and his face burned with heat for some unknown reason. The gigai was an absolute pain to deal with. It had so much maintenance it needed, and not to mention he didn't know why it seemed to constantly malfunction.

The girls in front of Ulquiorra exchanged looks. "Oh…I see," said one of them, getting upset and leaving the classroom.

"Wait!" Called one of her friends.

The rest of the girls followed the two out of the classroom.

* * *

Ulquiorra couldn't work that weekend with a busted arm, so Urahara gave him a piece of Soul Candy. He explained that it was swallowed and would allow the user to evacuate their gigai, leaving behind an artificial soul. After Ulquiorra had gotten home from school, he immediately took this candy.

"Finally rid of that garbage thing," Ulquiorra exhaled. He looked in the mirror. He was still wearing his prison garments, the plain and thin white yukata, but he didn't care. He was sick of staring at the human version of his face. His hand rested on his chest where his hollow hole was located. He was…disappointed?

The Soul Candy Urahara had programmed for Ulquiorra was mellow and nearly lifeless. It spoke in a monotone voice, and usually only responded to yes or no questions. Ulquiorra wondered if that's how he appeared to people.

He began his work, Grimmjow making some comment about his appearance. Ulquiorra kept at his work and tuned out most of Grimmjow's griping about "being reduced to this" and "we used to be a couple of badasses".

The front door opened, a little bell going off to signal a new arrival. Ulquiorra was curious who would be visiting at this hour, so he went to see who it was. Ururu had greeted them warmly, and skipped off to tell Urahara.

Ulquiorra, who had made no effort to hide himself as he was used to being in a gigai, was in plain view to the visitors. Ulquiorra's eyes widened in shock, and his chest tightened when he recognized them. They were the Quincy Uryu and…

_Orihime._


	5. Apologize

Orihime was glad for Uryu's company, but he almost felt too suffocating. Any time Orihime walked off the school grounds, Uryu was there to walk her home. It was a sweet gesture, but he even went with her to run errands after school. She knew he was concerned about her, but ever since her capture her friends had been treating her like she was made of glass.

 _Komori is not him_ …she told herself while she was picking up vegetables for her dinner. Uryu was reading the labels on some kind of canned coffee in another isle over.

She finished her shopping, Uryu insisting he carry the bags, and they made their way to her apartment. Unlike the other nights that week, Uryu requested to go inside, which confused Orihime but she obliged.

Once the door was shut, Uryu looked out the front blinds. Orihime went into the kitchen to put away the food, and when she emerged she asked Uryu what was wrong.

"It's Komori," Uryu said. "He's been stalking you all week. He leaves once you get home, but I don't know where he goes."

Orihime's heart began to pound. "What…what does he want from me?" She managed to say, her voice trembling. She looked at the floor. _It can't be…it can't…the war is over_ …

 _No. You know it's him. Somehow…and for some reason…he's come for you…_ Orihime told herself.

_I need to…_

After gathering her resolve, she clenched her fists and looked up. "We can't rule out the possibility this is connected to Aizen. We should ask Urahara."

"That's…actually a good idea," Uryu agreed.

The pair, after Orihime changed out of her uniform into a tshirt and long skirt, made the walk to Urahara's shop. To keep herself from getting too nervous about the whole situation, she began talking about random gossip at school to Uryu. Uryu didn't seem to really understand much of what she was saying, but he nodded his head anyways.

They eventually came to the familiar spot. Orihime hadn't visited Urahara since the end of the war, but Uryu was a regular there, due to him taking over for Ichigo regarding Hollow extermination.

"Oh I wonder how everyone is doing!" Orihime said. "I haven't seen them in…hasn't it been several months Uryu?"

"They're fine," Uryu said, rapping on the door. "I haven't seen Urahara in a few weeks due to him working on some 'super secret' project, but anyways I-"

Ururu answered the door, a smile beaming across her usually mopey looking face. "Orihime! I'll go tell the others right away you're here!" With that she immediately ran off.

Uryu stepped inside, but immediately froze in place afterwards.

"Uryu? What's wron-"

Orihime gasped. There, standing in front of her, barely ten feet away…

 _Was Ulquiorra Cifer_.

Orihime took a tiny step backwards, her hand firmly planted on her chest to help ail her beating heart. Ulquiorra's eyes were locked on hers. Her breath stopped when he spoke.

"Orihime," Ulquiorra said quietly, taking a step forwards and reaching for her.

"U-ulquiorra…" Orihime said.

Uryu stepped protectively in front of Orihime. "Mind telling us what the hell you're doing alive?! And what the hell are you doing in Urahara's-"

Urahara himself had arrived in the room, having been brought there by Ururu. When he saw the mess he had just walked in on, he threw up his hands. "Oh. Great. Hi. Uh. Listen. I can explain…" He stepped next to Ulquiorra and put and arm around the arrancar's shoulder. "Say hello to my little project aha…"

"What the hell Urahara!" Uryu shouted. "Why the hell would you bring this guy back from the dead?!"

"He did no such thing," Ulquiorra said, removing Kisuke's arm from his shoulder. "He found me. We currently do not know how I was revived. And before you attack me or do something else foolish," Ulquiorra glanced at Orihime, who looked away from him the moment he laid eyes on her. He then returned his gaze to Uryu. "I am no longer in service to Aizen. So unless you get in my way, I am no threat to you."

"Depends on what your goal is," Uryu said, his voice poisonous.

Urahara grinned. "He wants to learn about humans."

A sound escaped Ulquiorra's throat, and he looked in another direction. Orihime could have sword the normal white color of his skin had turned slightly pink. _Did he just…blush?_

Orihime gently pushed Uryu out of the way so that she could speak to Ulquiorra properly. "So I was right! You ARE Komori!"

Ulquiorra focused on Orihime again. "Yes. You recognized me, despite that dreadful gigai."

Orihime reached out a hand to touch his face, but hesitated and pulled back. _What…are you doing?_ "I'm sorry for slapping you!" She apologized, hanging her head.

"Orihime! What are you-" Uryu interjected, but a hand wave from Urahara shut him up quickly.

Orihime felt cold fingers cup her cheek and gently pull her head back up. Ulquiorra now had her face in his right hand, his thumb slightly brushing against her cheek. "No. You do not bow to me Orihime Inoue. I am the only one who should." He released her face and took a few steps backwards, then knelt on the floor before her. "I am sorry for what I have done to you…and…your friends…" He added on quickly at the end.

"What about the stalking?" Uryu demanded.

Ulquiorra got up and looked puzzled. "Stalking?"

"Following her around every day!" Uryu said.

"I did not realize this had negative associations. I was merely curious to what she did after school," Ulquiorra replied.

Orihime could barely believe what she was hearing, or just saw. Ulquiorra…apologized to her? But…why? Did he…actually feel bad about what he did? She placed her hand on her cheek where Ulquiorra had touched her. His hands were cold, but she felt warm regardless.

"I had approached her the first day but she seemed unresponsive," Ulquiorra continued to explain. "So I decided to watch her, if I was unable to converse with her."

Orihime, who had many unsorted emotions at the moment, was doing her best to pay attention. "It's okay. I'm not mad or anything."

"Orihime…" Uryu sighed.

She smiled at Ulquiorra and held out her hand in front of her. "If you wanna know more about humans, I can help you."

Ulquiorra slid his fingers in between hers. He didn't give a verbal reply, but Orihime didn't need one.

* * *

"You always sit by yourself during lunch," Orihime said, approaching Ulquiorra while they were at school. They were outside this time, because the weather was nice and sunny. Ulquiorra had taken shade under a tree, mostly likely because of his pale skin. His arm was still in a sling, making him appear more vulnerable.

Orihime had given Ulquiorra's apology a lot of thought the night she went home from Urahara's. Urahara had explained everything to Uryu and Orihime, asking the pair to keep quiet about it, especially from Ichigo. Orihime felt bad that she couldn't tell Ichigo, but she knew it was for the best. If he knew Ulquiorra was still alive, he would probably do something incredibly irrational, especially since he didn't have his powers anymore. Orihime wished she had some kind of magic wand that could fix everything. Her Shun Shun Rikka could only fix so much, and only physical ailments. She saw so much sincerity in Ulquiorra's apology that she was completely convinced he was ready to change, but she was concerned that the others wouldn't agree.

"I have no interest in interacting with the other students here," Ulquiorra replied bluntly.

Orihime's brow furrowed. She was used to him being closed off in their conversations in the month she was captured. He had begun to warm up, at least so she thought, when he began sitting in her room for hours listening to her talk. One time he even fell asleep on the couch in her room, his peaceful face almost making him appear human. "You…have to interact with people to learn more about them, Ulq-uhm, Komori."

Ulquiorra clasped his non injured hand over where his hollow hole was located when not in his more humanlike gigai. "I am only interested in you and this heart you gave me," he said, a little too loudly for Orihime's comfort.

"Shh!" Orihime cried, waving her hands. "Not so loud! D-don't talk like that in front of my classmates! What if someone hears you?"

Ulquiorra looked confused. "But you spoke of this heart quite boldly during our last encount-"

"A guy and a girl can't say that to each other by themselves or…people will think they're dating!" Orihime said, her voice low.

"Dating? Another term I do not understand," Ulquiorra frowned a tiny bit. "You humans are so complicat-" A sound growled from his stomach, and he looked rather annoyed.

"Oh! You're hungry!" Orihime said, sitting down on the grass across from him.

"Is that what that means?" Ulquiorra said lazily. "I dislike this ritual of eating, but I make sure to eat once a day to replenish my energy."

Orihime's eyes widened. "No wonder you look so tired and your reiatsu is so small! You have to eat three meals a day and snacks!"

"Three?" Ulquiorra's voice sounded exasperated.

"Did you pack a lunch?" Orihime asked. "I almost never see you eat."

Ulquiorra produced the convenience store lunch Urahara had given him.

Orihime gasped. "Oh no wonder you don't like eating! That food isn't any good at all. It's so boring! Here!" She reached into her bag and pulled out a few containers. "Here's wasabi, garlic butter, and red bean paste! I always carry it with my lunch because sometimes my lunch is so boring!"

Ulquiorra took the containers and looked at them from all sides before opening them. Orihime leaned forwards in suspense. _Would he like it?_ She thought. _People always think my food ideas are weird…_

Ulquiorra put all three condiments on top of his food. Orihime gulped as he took his first bite. She really didn't want his experiences with her to be bad, especially since this was the first time they had had any kind of conversation since the night previous.

Ulquiorra's expression immediately changed, and he began shoveling his food down quickly. He was eating one-handed, his tray balanced on his lap, and a spoon in his good hand.

"Slow down! You'll choke!" Orihime cried.

Ulquiorra looked up. He had a piece of rice stuck to his face. "I did not realize food had an actually interesting flavor to it," he said. "I now know why humans tolerate eating three meals a day." He resumed eating his lunch, and looked disappointed when he had finished.

Orihime offered him some of her lunch. She always packed too much, but nobody ever wanted to eat her cooking, so often it went to waste. Ulquiorra gladly took the food offered him and ate that as well. Orihime giggled as she watched him eat. It was a change from his normal rigid and put together behavior. She also pitied him a bit, the fact that he had been so hungry for so long and nobody was giving him food that he liked. She vowed to bring extra food for him from now on.

"Do you guys not usually eat?" Orihime asked. "I thought you at least ate other hollows. And…" She winced. "…humans…"

Ulquiorra stopped shoveling for a moment, chewed the food in his mouth, and swallowed. "Arrancar no, but Menos yes. Grimmjow for an example I imagine remembers eating other Menos for power, at least shortly before his transformation." He closed his eyes. "I…was never able to consume anything since my birth. I never ate a single hollow or human soul…and if I did, it was before I was a Vasto Lordes. So no, I have never eaten anything, especially not for sustenance."

Orihime grinned. "No wonder you are so grumpy all the time! I think I'd just die if I wasn't able to eat all the yummy foods I like."

"Yes you would die, you're a human," Ulquiorra said bluntly.

Orihime began giggling again. "Oh it's just an expression! I wouldn't really die…well maybe I'd die if I didn't eat but uhm…" She stopped when she saw the blank expression on Ulquiorra's face. She blushed with embarrassment, looked down at her own lunch, and began to eat it.

* * *

The weight on Ulquiorra's chest lifted the moment he apologized to Orihime. He scolded himself at how stupid it was to follow her around instead of facing the issue. It was so unproductive.

Ulquiorra awkwardly kept his distance from Orihime, and ceased following her around (especially after he received a lecture from Urahara as to why stalking was NOT an accepted human behavior). However, she did make an effort to sit and eat with him every lunchtime. She would make sure he would eat his lunch by offering him some new kind of interesting combination of food. Ulquiorra didn't have much experience regarding flavor preferences, but he actually enjoyed the complex experience he had while eating Orihime's food. So much, in fact, that he requested to bring one of her many varieties of weird sauces home so that he could eat it with whatever dinner Urahara forced upon him.

Ulquiorra saw next to nothing of Nel, who Urahara said was in an induced coma. Grimmjow would sometimes sit in proximity to Urahara's workroom door, or pace restlessly in front of it, but he kept insisting it "had nothing to do with that brat." Ulquiorra had no interest in proving anything to Grimmjow, so he simply ignored his fellow Espada's strange denial of affection for Nel (or others in general).

One afternoon after school, Orihime caught up to Ulquiorra. This was an unusual move for her, as they mostly interacted in a classtime setting.

"What is it, girl?" Ulquiorra asked. A lump formed in his throat and he had to swallow it to maintain his composure. Her cheeks were pink, and her hair was blown out of style. How long had she been running after him without him noticing?

Orihime caught her breath. "Well you see I wanted to-"

 _Her face…_ Ulquiorra carefully brushed stray hair from Orihime's face, tucking the strands behind her ears. "There was hair in your mouth," he said quietly.

Orihime turned even pinker than she was before.

"Did that short of a run really wind you that badly?" Ulquiorra asked. "Your body must be out of-"

"Wah? N-no! I mean-" Orihime struggled. She sighed. "I wanted to ask you if you wanted to go to my favorite bakery with me!"

"Bakery?" Ulquiorra blinked. "Is that the place where-"

"Hey Orihime!"

Ulquiorra's entire body went rigid, and his eyes locked onto the owner of the voice. Ichigo Kurosaki had approached the two of them, his right hand occupied by a bookbag he had slung over his shoulder. Fight or flight instinct began welling up inside the arrancar, and not due to Ichigo's reiatsu, which was basically nonexistent. This…feeling was more complicated than reiatsu levels. Ichigo was some kind of unexplainable _threat_ that Ulquiorra wanted to keep away from Orihime.

Ichigo looked at Ulquiorra, and his already furrowed brow creased deeper. "Hey…who's this guy?" he said.

_He doesn't recognize me…_

"Its our new classmate Komori!" Orihime said with a nervous smile. "Don't you remember, Ichigo?"

"Oh. Yeah that's right," Ichigo said.

Orihime was between the two males, Ichigo more towards the school building, and Ulquiorra nearly to the school grounds exit. Ulquiorra would have used a sonido to get between Orihime and Ichigo, but he was in that pathetic gigai. Instead, he took several steps forwards, closing the gap between him and Orihime, then placing his uninjured hand on the back of her shoulder. He made eye contact with Ichigo while doing this. "What do you need from her?" Ulquiorra asked, his voice dropping subtly, the change minor but just enough to know it was deeply threatening.

"I just wanted to return the manga I borrowed," Ichigo said, appearing a bit bothered by this display. He handed a volume of manga to Orihime, who took it with a warm smile.

"You can borrow the next one if you want," she offered. "I'll bring it next week!"

Ichigo agreed, waved goodbye, and walked down the street towards his home.

"Uhm…Ulquiorra?" Orihime said. "Y-you're still touching me…"

Ulquiorra removed his hand from her shoulder. "I…am unaware as to my motives for that."

Orihime smiled. "That's okay! I don't mind. Now come on! They should be having fresh bread out of the oven right now!" She grabbed Ulquiorra's hand and dragged him down the street.


	6. Donuts

Ichigo could have sworn he had seen Komori somewhere before. He was sure he had never met the new boy before, but something was familiar about the way he carried himself. His eyes were very distinct as well, but Ichigo was having a hard time placing it. _Eyes like that are so unusual_ …he thought.

He was on his way home from school. He stuck his hand in his pocket, his hand brushing he most precious possession: the Soul Reaper badge. It had no practical use to him anymore, but he still carried it with him, perhaps in hopes it could connect him to that world again. It no longer alerted him of hollows, the skull-like insignia now lifeless, an eerie skeleton of once was. He sighed and shoved it back in his pocket.

He had done nothing but sulk since he had lost his powers, wasting his free time playing video games or reading manga. Video games had nothing on the real experience of combat, but it gave him something to do. He still practiced his swordplay while alone in his room, sometimes desperately calling out to Zangetsu for him to hear him. All people did was sacrifice themselves to help him. Even his own sword, who wanted nothing else than to protect him, had sacrificed himself to give Ichigo the power he needed to win against Aizen.

He arrived home, his father no longer greeting him with the customary attack "lesson". Their relationship became a bit more serious after Ichigo had learned his father Isshin was a former Soul Reaper captain. Isshin, however, did not speak of the fight against Aizen. It was like…it never happened.

Ichigo flopped onto his bed and stared at the ceiling. Usually he could not go a few minutes in peace without the annoyance of the mod soul Kon, trapped inside a trashy old stuffed lion, but even he was now gone. Urahara had taken the mod soul somewhere for "safekeeping", but Uchigo didn't know where that was supposed to be. Ichigo never enjoyed Kon's company, but now he was beginning to miss him.

"This is stupid!" Ichigo snapped, grabbing his pillow and throwing it against the wall. He had sat up during this, and now he buried his head in his hands.

His friends had been avoiding him. Chad was never a conversationalist, but even he seemed to be around Ichigo less and less. Uryu, Ichigo jealously knew, was in charge of Hollow exterminations. Ichigo assumed Chad was as well, but the latter was too respectful of Ichigo's pride to mention it.

The person that Ichigo felt the worst about was Orihime. She had tried to cheer him up, but all he did was push her away. Then, her mood began to decline, and she became less talkative and seemed to sulk a lot. He knew that she had suffered while in captivity to Aizen, and under that bastard Ulquiorra's influence.

He shook his head. He didn't like to think about that fight. It was one of his deepest regrets, his most shameful experiences, and he did his best to keep it suppressed at the back of his mind.

* * *

Hueco Mundo was a desert hellscape, cold and lifeless, with crystal trees scattered across the wasteland. The inhabitants of this cursed land were just as warped, their existence nothing of that but sorrow. Those who were lucky enough to evolve past this mindless beast stage into the arrancar, lived in what was now the ruins of the large palace Las Noches.

Tier Halibel was currently the strongest arrancar alive in Las Noches. After the defeat of Aizen, the remaining surviving arrancar turned their focus on Halibel as their leader. Of course, not all the arrancar agreed, and many violent fights commenced before Halibel rose victorious, bringing about some semblance of peace to Las Noches.

Of course, this did not stop those who opposed her rule, especially regarding some of her decisions. Her most controversial order was that she had allied with Kisuke Urahara, a Soul Reaper, and expected the others to do as well.

The one most loudly opposed was an arrancar named Loly. "You can't just go against everything Lord Aizen believed in!" Loly screamed, once again having her daily berating of Halibel's judgement. "You've sided with a Soul Reaper-and Lord Aizen's worst enemy!"

Halibel sighed. She wished she was still a murderous, honorless monster who could kill anyone in cold blood, even an ally. Loly was an annoyance, but what good would it do for her to murder her own comrade? "Aizen is no longer our leader. I am. My decisions are in the best interest of the arrancar. Unless you wish to challenge my position of power by dueling me, I suggest you leave my presence."

Loly gulped and scampered off.

"I owe a human my life," Halibel said to herself softly. "A human showed even monsters like us kindness. And for that, I shall do everything in my power to keep her world safe."

* * *

"This tastes so good what the hell is this?"

Grimmjow was stuffing food in his mouth at a somewhat alarming rate.

"They are called donuts," Ulquiorra explained. "The girl took us to a place called a Bakery, and I acquired a box of them. I am fond of them but I prefer them with hot sauce."

"Uh…okay," Grimmjow said, his face in a weird expression. "Human food tastes so much better than eatin' hollows."

"I wouldn't know," Ulquiorra said quietly.

"Ah yeah, right, Aizen said somethin' about that with you," Grimmjow remarked. "Weird. Never heard of that before. Isn't it kinda a hollow's _thing_ to yah know...eat?"

"I don't know," Ulquiorra said, taking a donut for himself and topping it with hot sauce.

"Yeah you've always been kinda weird," Grimmjow said. "Even weirdos like Szayelaporro seemed more like the rest of us than you did."

"I don't know!" Ulquiorra suddenly outburst, slamming his fist onto the table. Ururu, who had wandered into the room and taken a donut, looked startled.

"Never thought you to be an emotional guy," said Grimmjow.

"Emotions are a human invention to explain their survival instincts," Ulquiorra said as he angrily took a bite of his donut. "They are useless and can be used to manipulate those who have them."

Grimmjow raised his eyebrows and said nothing. "Okay then why're you hanging out with that girl all the time?"

Ulquiorra took another bite of the donut and didn't reply.

Grimmjow grinned wickedly. "Don't tell me you got the hots for her. I mean she is pretty cute for a human, and you didn't jump at the chance when she was captured…"

"Say another word and I will kill you," Ulquiorra said, his voice breathy and dark.

Grimmjow took the hint and immediately shut up.

Ulquiorra had something to inquire of Urahara. It had come to his attention that it was normal for high school students to carry money with them. Orihime had bought the donuts for him, but he didn't wish to rely on her for things. He much rather would have gotten them himself without inconveniencing her.

Urahara was busy working in his workroom, Nel asleep on some kind of contraption, several cords attached to her hollow helmet and various parts of her body. There were a few monitors showing various facts and figures, which Ulquiorra assumed had to do with Nel due to the fact they were attached to her cords. Urahara was hunched over his desk, his back turned to Nel, and a bracelet in his hand.

"What do you want, Ulquiorra?" Urahara asked distractedly.

"I have an inquiry," Ulquiorra replied, his eyes scanning more of the room. This workroom was less unsettling than Szayelaporro's, but still gave off the same aura nonetheless. Some of the tools Ulquiorra wasn't even sure what they were _for_.

Urahara's brow furrowed, and he shook the bracelet-like object he was working on. "I can only build one thing at a time, and I think my efforts should be focused on the person closest to death!" He gestured at the sleeping Nel.

"I only came here to ask about money, but now I'm intrigued as to what you assumed I would have wanted you to build me," Ulquiorra replied, sticking his hands in his pockets.

Urahara shook his head. "Sorry." He took a deep breath. "Haven't slept in a while. I just have been bracing myself for you to ask about getting your zanpakto back."

Ulquiorra's eyes widened. "I had wondered where it was. But there is no rush for it to be returned. My released state is enough to destroy this town if I use it, and there is no immediate threat of enemies strong enough that I would even have to draw my sword."

"You're my favorite arrancar child," Urahara remarked. "So reasonable. Grimmjow would have thrown a tantrum." He chuckled to himself and looked in his desk drawer. He pulled out a worn leather wallet and produced a few pieces of paper money. He handed the money to Ulquiorra and said "here. You can have an allowance. Don't tell Grimmjow."

Ulquiorra took the money and stared at it, then folded it carefully and placed it in his pocket.

* * *

Orihime's spirits had been lifted as of late. She enjoyed showing Ulquiorra all the things she liked and places to go around Karakura town. Since he hardly had any responsibilities save for chores at Urahara's, he had almost as much free time as Orihime herself. She finally had company, despite him not having much of an enthusiastic presence.

Ulquiorra's reactions to things sometimes reminded Orihime of a small child. He wouldn't speak many words, but he looked at new things with a sense of wonder..his expression on his face hardly, if ever, changed, but Orihime began to notice subtleties in his eyes and movements. She began to believe that truly his aggressive and antagonistic behavior had stemmed from Aizen's control, and that he really was no threat to her and her friends at all.

"So does Urahara give you clothes?" Orihime asked suddenly as they were walking away from the bakery. Their routine had been, if Orihime didn't have handicraft's club, to go somewhere in town to get a snack, then take Orihime home.

Ulquiorra was busy chewing into a blueberry muffin topped with garlic butter. "Hm?" He swallowed. "He gave me extra clothes of his to borrow for when I am working."

"So you really don't have any outfits other than your uniform!" Orihime gasped.

"Does it matter?" Ulquiorra asked.

Orihime nodded fervently. "Of course! You need lots of outfits! Sometimes you need a different outfit for every day depending on your mood! Oh and how boring it would be to wear the same thing every day. Imagine wearing our school uniform-" She stopped. Come to think of it, Ulquiorra wore exactly the same thing while working under Aizen.

"That sounds useless," Ulquiorra said. "Having to think about what you wear every day. It is bad enough I have to eat so much."

"A lot of men aren't great at that sort of thing," Orihime went on. "But that's okay because their wives can pick out clothes for them!"

There was a bit of silence between them. Orihime blushed. _Oh you dummy! Why are you talking about wives? That's not-_

"Are wives some kind of fracciónes?" Ulquiorra asked.

"W-what? Oh! Uhm…" Orihime's heart beat faster. What should she say? How would she explain it to him? "So it's like...when two people are super special to each other they get married! A wife is what you call a girl, and a husband is what you call a man!"

"A partnership?" Ulquiorra asked.

"Yes but it's even more important because they're in love," Orihime tried to explain, her face turning redder by the minute.

"In love you say," Ulquiorra said as he ate the last bite of his muffin. "What does that feel like? Or more specifically, how does one know that they are in this Love?"

"Well I…" Orihime thought back to the night she confessed to a sleeping Ichigo, before she was captured and taken to Hueco Mundo by the arrancar standing before her. How DID she know she was in love with Ichigo? Was it something that she just knew? Or…

Was it something she had to keep convincing herself of?

"You've grown unusually quiet," Ulquiorra remarked. "Was the question truly that difficult?"

"I think its when two people want to give all of their heart to each other," Orihime finally replied. "When they can rely on each other for everything, and just seeing that person brightens their day. Like…a warm light in a cold night…or the moon in the dark sky. Or the warm sun that gives life to everything…or…" The more Orihime spoke, the more she realized about her feelings for Ichigo. They were… _unrequited_. He may have been a light in her life...but she couldn't do anything for him during his time of need.

Tears began unwillingly spilling down her face. She tried to keep the knowledge that Ichigo didn't love her back suppressed, but it had been gashed open into a fresh, painful wound.

Orihime felt a cold hand on her cheek. Ulquiorra had brushed away the tear that had fallen with a gentle touch from the back of his good hand. "Why are you crying, girl?" He asked softly.

Orihime sniffed and looked away. She had never willingly cried in front of Ulquiorra, staying strong for her friends during her imprisonment. And now, he was…trying to comfort her? She felt confused and vulnerable. "Oh it's…it's nothing," Orihime said, wiping her eyes. "Just uhm…remembering something that's all. Oh, I'm home already. Well…bye! See you tomorrow!" She escaped up the stairs and straight into her apartment.

Why did Ulquiorra always make her want to run away? Was it because he scared her? No, that wasn't it. He was no threat to her or her friends at that moment. Maybe it was because his loneliness scared her, his solitary existence scared her, because deep down she could truly understand his emptiness.


	7. Arrancar

It had been over a month since Ulquiorra had become Komori Kuroda of Karakura High. His arm had finally healed, and he was free of the annoying sling. Ulquiorra was becoming used to his routine of feigning humanity: attending school, learning new things from Orihime, and working at Urahara's shop. Tessai had returned from his vacation, but he was so pleased with Ulquiorra's (and a lesser extent, Grimmjow's) efficiency, he had the two arrancar continue to work if they so chose. Grimmjow initially refused, but was "convinced" by a scary conversation with Urahara.

"Everyone! I've done it!" Said Urahara one morning as he arrived at the breakfast table.

"Done what?" Grumbled a sleepy Jinta.

Grimmjow was sitting at the table, impatiently holding his spoon and waiting for breakfast to be served. "Spit it out, old man. I don't got all day."

Ulquiorra took his seat calmly, dressed in his perfectly clean school uniform, ready for the school day. He said nothing, but hoped Urahara's impending speech would not hinder him. If he was late to class, then his time with Orihime would be cut shorter than necessary.

"Well now no need to applause," Urahara said sarcastically. "I only fixed Nel that's all."

"She's awake?" Grimmjow's attention was in full towards Urahara.

Urahara chuckled. "Come on out, Nel."

An arrancar woman with long green hair, a cracked hollow mask on the top of her head, a curvaceous figure, and dressed in one of Kisuke's apparently plentiful green jinbei entered the room. She grinned immediately upon seeing everyone, and waved her hand. "Hey guys!"

Grimmjow's eyes widened, his mouth open to speak but he was stunned into silence.

Ulquiorra blinked and glanced over at Grimmjow. "Were you unaware of Nelliel's true state?"

Grimmjow's face went pink. "I was…I just didn't remember her being so…" He said the rest under his breath.

Nel took a seat next to Grimmjow, propping her head up with her arm which she had rested on the table. "Nice to see you, Grimmjow. You haven't been misbehaving have you?"

Grimmjow made a noise that sounded strangely like that of an angry cat.

As they ate breakfast, Nel plastered everyone with a seemingly unending amount of questions. Grimmjow pretty much refused to answer, avoiding her gaze and shovelling as much rice porridge into his mouth as possible. Most of her questions then turned to Ulquiorra, who had stirred jam and soy sauce into his porridge (despite the disgusted looks from those present at the table).

"So you wear that gigai so you can go to school?" Nel asked. "Wait…does Ichigo go to that school!?"

Ulquiorra nodded. "Ichigo Kurosaki is my classmate. However he does not-"

"Oh Mr. Urahara can I go see him?" Nel asked.

Urahara's face looked apologetic. "I'm sorry Nel but…its too dangerous for Ichigo to see you right now given his current condition."

Nel's face fell. "Oh…" she sulked.

"Now now don't worry! I'm sure you'll be able to see Ichigo eventually!" Urahara tried to cheer her up.

"Yeah I hope so!" Nel smiled.

Ulquiorra's wristwatch (borrowed indefinately from Urahara) went off, indicating it was time for him to go to school.

* * *

"You've been spending a lot of time with that Komori guy," Tatsuki remarked.

Orihime smiled. "Well he's just so easy to get along with I guess!"

"Really? All I get is this weird dark aura from him," Tatsuki said. "He's…kinda weird, Orihime. And I'm not just saying that cuz half the girls are in love with him."

"They are? Oh yeah that's right," Orihime said. _I wonder what he would think about having a girlfriend…_ She giggled to herself. "He would just make a face like this!" She said the last part out loud, furrowing her brow and trying to mimic Ulquiorra's annoyed expression.

"What…are you talking about?" Tatsuki said, shaking her head with a smile.

Orihime blushed. "Oh! Sorry. Daydreaming out loud again haha!"

Ichigo arrived to class and approached the two girls. "Hey guys. What's got Orihime all flustered?"

Tatsuki grinned. "Hey Ichigo! Oh nothing…she just has been hanging out with a booooooy!"

Ichigo raised his eyebrows.

"Oh nonono it's not what you think I-" _How can I explain it to them? I can't! Oh it looks so awkward…and especially in front of Ichigo!_

"That new kid Komori. He seems to have taken a liking to Orihime and they've been hanging out every day after school!" Tatsuki continued. "I've been busy with practice so I haven't been able to tag along but they sure do seem to like each other."

"Wh-what!?" Orihime waved her hands. "Nononono-"

"That Komori guy?" Ichigo asked, his brow furrowed.

"What about him?"

Orihime swallowed as Ulquiorra entered the classroom. A cold energy radiated from Ulquiorra and Ichigo's staredown, as the former made a slow paced approach.

"I don't know what it is about you, but you're kinda weird," Ichigo said, clenching his right fist.

Ulquiorra raised his eyebrows. "Was that supposed to provoke me?" He walked past Ichigo and greeted Orihime before taking his seat.

Uryu had watched this encounter from his seat, sending a worried glance in Orihime's direction. Orihime blushed and looked away from Uryu and out the window. She didn't like keeping this secret from Ichigo, but she knew it was for his own good.

* * *

"Hey I'm not finished with you!" Ichigo called out to Ulquiorra after school.

Ulquiorra had been walking alongside Orihime, as was customary at this point. His hands were in his pockets, his pose confident, as he spun around to face Ichigo. "I have no business with you, Kurosaki," Ulquiorra said icily.

 _I can't let them fight…_ Orihime's brow furrowed. _Ulquiorra could seriously hurt Ichigo without his powers! He wouldn't hurt him…would he?_

"Like hell you don't," Ichigo growled. "Tell me what you want with Orihime so badly, huh? I heard you were stalking her!"

"It was a misunderstanding," Ulquiorra explained. "Now leave us alone."

"That's a load of crap," said Ichigo. "Orihime is just too damn nice to say anything to you, even though you probably creep the hell out of her!"

Ulquiorra's entire body immediately tensed. Orihime sensed a complete shift in his emotional state, and she instinctively put a hand on his arm in an attempt to calm him. Ulquiorra's muscles relaxed and he glanced towards Orihime, his eyes wide with surprise.

Orihime walked in front of Ulquiorra to face Ichigo. "You worry too much Ichigo! Komori is my friend! He's just not that great at making friends, that's all! You should try to get to know him, he's not as scary as he seems, I promise!"

Ichigo's seemingly permanent furrowed brow loosened slightly. "Well…whatever. Forget about it. Just…be careful." He said as his mood returned to being the normal gloomy. He stuck his hands in his pockets and walked down the street towards his home.

Orihime watched Ichigo walk away with a heavy heart. Why couldn't he see that he was important to his friends even without his power? Why couldn't he see that-

A sound escaped Orihime's throat in surprise as she felt cold fingers wrap around her own. Ulquiorra, his expression a rare and unusual one of vulnerability, had taken the hand she had idly at her side in his.

Orihime blushed, and silently began walking down the street, his hand in hers. There was silence between them, only their footsteps making any noise. Orihime focused on the sounds of the rustling tree branches or cars going by to distract her mind, but it was to no avail. She kept thinking of Ichigo, the duel he and Ulquiorra had, and the monster he had turned into because of…

"Kurosaki will never appreciate it," Ulquiorra finally said.

Orihime's heart jumped. "W-what?" _He cant read minds can he? Nono calm down he isn't reading your mind…_

"The strange order of things," Ulquiorra replied cryptically. Orihime blinked in confusion, but Ulquiorra did not offer her any explanation.

There was some more silence, until Ulquiorra once again spoke. "Does Kurosaki trouble you this much?"

Orihime gripped a bit tighter to Ulquiorra's hand instinctively. "Can I…tell you something?" She said quietly. She had to tell someone. She couldn't keep it bottled up inside her any longer…and she needed to say this to Ulquiorra especially.

"You may tell me anything," Ulquiorra replied. "What I do with that information is another matter."

Orihime winced. His voice was always so cold. She took a deep breath. "It…it's my fault you died. If I wasn't so weak…I wouldn't have forced Ichigo to become that monster and hate himself so much! He only became that way to protect me! I just feel so guilty…and your death I never felt the same afterwards…I…"

"If it is that _thing_ you are referring to," Ulquiorra said with disgust. "You had no part in it. Hollows are hard to kill, and will survive clinging to whatever instinct their host has. Kurosaki's instinct is to protect his friends, and his hollow latched onto it. I was reluctant to admit it was a hollow, but I finally accepted it once Urahara told me how he was made."

Orihime opened her mouth to respond, but Ulquiorra continued.

"As for my death, if I had not been stopped, I would have killed Kurosaki and most likely the Quincy if he had kept attacking me pointlessly," Ulquiorra said. "My death was inevitable." He looked at Orihime, his eyes like an emerald pool of sadness. "I had no intention to harming you…" He added softly.

"I…" Orihime tried to process what Ulquiorra had told her. It wasn't her fault? Ulquiorra didn't blame her for his death at all. She decided to deflect her feelings and ask Ulquiorra another question. "What is your instinct? Aren't you a hollow?"

"Nothing," Ulquiorra replied. He placed his right hand over his chest where his hollow hole should have been. "Complete nothingness. My instinct is to not exist. But then I am forced to exist, and I find comfort in following orders." He glanced at Orihime again. "Aizen's orders were my instinct. But now I have nothing, so I-"

"What? I don't believe you!" Orihime smiled. "You're way too curious for your own good! You're like a cat! Your instinct has got to be curiosity or something. Why else would you be so interested in me?"

Ulquiorra had yet again another stunned expression. "You are a strange girl," he said. They had just arrived at Orihime's apartment, having held hands the entire walk there. Orihime didn't want to let go of his hand, but she knew she would have to.

"Will you…" Ulquiorra started to say.

Orihime blinked. "Will I what?" She asked. What could he possibly want to ask her? Her heart began beating as she thought of a bunch of embarrassing possibilities.

Suddenly, there was a spike in reiatsu, and a strange cracking sound could be heard. Orihime turned her head to see a garganta opening in the sky. She gasped, and Ulquiorra let go of her hand. He took a defensive stance in front of her, his arm out to have her stand back.

Three arrancar that Orihime had never seen before emerged from the garganta. They were all female, dressed in the typical white clothing, all with zanpakto at their hips. The girl who was presumably their leader, approached Ulquiorra with a smirk on her face.

"Well well well, been a pain in the ass to locate you, Espada number four," she said. "Now we know why. You're stuck looking like a human of all things!"

Ulquiorra's expression hardly changed. "What do you want?" He asked. "Did Grimmjow report to Halibel of my revival? If she is trying to recruit me I-"

"Oh no, we aint on our dear Halibel's orders," the arrancar sneered. "We're here on…let's just say, _actual_ arrancar business. We're here to rendezvous with you just like Lord Aizen said."

"Aizen said _what_?" Ulquiorra's voice quivered for a second.

"Yeah you're supposed to come back with us and further the plan to help Lord Aizen!" The arrancar said.

"I do not have the slightest clue as to what you are talking about," Ulquiorra sighed. "Now leave. I have no interest in Aizen. The strongest of the espada were easily defeated by the very captains who keep Aizen sealed. Any attempt to release him from prison is futile."

The arrancar looked behind Ulquiorra to see Orihime. "Oh, if it isnt the Princess! So, guess you missed your little plaything huh? Well maybe if we removed her as a distraction you'll come to your senses!"

Orihime was about to react to the arrancar's attack with her shield, but Ulquiorra had somehow evacuated his gigai and stopped the arrancar's blade with his bare right hand.

The arrancar's face went from one of bloodlust to that of sheer terror. Orihime could understand why. The moment Ulquiorra had left the gigai behind, his terrible and immense arrancar reiatsu was detectable. This poor arrancar was suddenly rudely awakened to the fact she was provoking arguably the most terrifying Espada in Aizen's ranks.

"D-damn…" the arrancar muttered, attempting to pull back.

Ulquiorra crushed the arrancar's sword with one hand, breaking the sword into tiny pieces.

The arrancar stumbled backwards, but Ulquiorra grabbed her by the collar and lifted her off the ground. Her two companions rushed in to assist her, but Ulquiorra threw the first arrancar at them, deterring them.

Orihime had a hard time keeping up with the battle from the first section. Ulquiorra, as she remembered, had unworldly speed. The arrancar assailants were skilled as well, able to somewhat keep up with Ulquiorra's attacks.

Blood splattered onto the pavement. Orihime shrieked in surprise as the arrancar leader plummeted to the ground, covered in blood.

Ulquiorra casually blocked the sword of one of the two arrancar still uninjured with one of his forearms. His left hand was still tucked away in his pocket. "Incredible that you could dodge that. That attack should have killed you."

"Damn you!" She cried, using her broken sword to help her stand. There was a large, gaping wound through her left shoulder. Orihime assumed this was a miss on Ulquiorra's part, because he usually aimed for the middle of the chest.

"Your attempts are useless," Ulquiorra said, finally taking his left hand out of his pocket. He grabbed the remaining two arrancar by their faces and slammed them into the ground. "It is time for you to die."

"Ulquiorra, stop!"

Ulquiorra froze. He had a hand positioned above one of the arrancar's chests, ready to tear it apart. He turned his head to Orihime, who had called out to him, wordlessly expecting her to explain herself.

Orihime looked at the beaten arrancar lying on the ground, bleeding and injured. "Just let them go! You've already beaten them!"

Ulquiorra straightened his posture and stood to his full height (not very tall, but still menacing in its own way). His white hand dripped with blood, and the setting sun cast an eerie reddish light on him. "Foolish girl!" He cried out in distress. Orihime's eyes widened. Ulquiorra's face was twisted in an expression of concern, his voice raised loudly. "They will just come back to kill you!"

 _He did this to protect me…_ Orihime clenched her fists and dropped to her knees. "Please Ulquiorra! I don't want anyone else to die because of me!"

Ulquiorra hesitated for a moment, then kicked the arrancar he was previously going to slaughter. "Go," he said in the darkest voice Orihime had ever heard. "Before I change my mind."

The arrancar did their best to crawl towards a garganta and go through it. The leader looked back towards Orihime and said "you think you're so perfect! Who the hell do you think you are?! We'll make you regret making your stupid decisions!" The garganta closed before Ulquiorra could land a blow against the arrancar.

Orihime was shaking. Tears began flowing uncontrollably. She thought she had recovered from the horrors of the war and her imprisonment, but it all began flooding back to her the moment Ulquiorra went into battle.

Ulquiorra approached her and knelt beside her. Orihime didn't look at him. She couldn't. She didn't understand why Ulquiorra would try to protect her despite not having orders to do so. She knew he was interested in humans, but-

She felt a cold hand slide into hers. She gulped and finally looked up at Ulquiorra. He had taken her hand with his left one, which was clean, unlike his right which was covered in now drying blood. She was confused for a moment, until she realized that this was the only expression of connection he understood. _He protected me…because of his heart…_

She wiped her tears away with her sweater's sleeve. "S-sorry. I guess I was too overwhelmed."

"Are you hurt?" Ulquiorra asked.

Orihime was surprised by the question. "Oh. Uhm. No." Ulquiorra stood and helped her to do so as well. He still was holding her right hand in his left, and Orihime didn't want to let go.

He looked less intimidating than when he was her captor in Las Noches. He was wearing a plain white yukata, which Orihime had seen before as the undergarment of a Soul Reaper (however his had pockets sewn into it). He had no sword, and his hollow hole was visible due to the loose fitting collar of the clothing. The bloodstains, despite not belonging to him, made him appear injured. He looked vulnerable, like he needed some sort of protection.

"I need to inform Urahara," Ulquiorra said.

Orihime let go of his hand. "Okay I'll stay here and-"

She felt herself being lifted off her feet as Ulquiorra had picked her up bridal style. Air escaped her lungs as he lunged forwards and began running at an insane speed.

"What are you doing?" She cried.

"There is a chance more arrancar or even hollows would come to attack you," Ulquiorra explained calmly. "So you must stay with me for now."

Orihime covered her face in embarrassment. "I-I'm not too heavy am I?" She asked without thinking.

"Ridiculous. A mere human's weight is nothing to me," Ulquiorra scoffed. "I could carry ten of you and not tire."

Somehow this did not make Orihime feel better at all.

* * *

Ulquiorra arrived at Urahara's shop in what was probably under a minute. He finally set Orihime down on the ground, her hair flying everywhere from the shock of the speed at which they were flying. She had been gripping onto his neck, and still didn't let go when her legs first touched the ground, locking them in an awkward embrace.

 _She feels so warm and soft…_ Ulquiorra had never felt something quite like this before. It was somewhat familiar to when he was stuck under the heart of the crystal trees. Intriguing. He would have to look more into this.

Orihime let go of him with a small cry of embarrassment and started smoothing down her school uniform.

Ulquiorra stormed into the shop. Urahara was slumped over his desk, his wild blonde hair even more wild than usual. He appeared as if he had just woken up from a long nap, and he was eating out of a large bag of snacks. He blinked when he saw the arrancar. "Oh, you're back. How was school? Don't tell me you forgot your gigai at school."

"Orihime is in danger," Ulquiorra stated.

Urahara raised his eyebrows.

"Arrancar have come looking for me, stating it has something to do with the return of Aizen," Ulquiorra said. "They are targeting Orihime in an attempt to persuade me to join them."

"That's not good," Urahara said, shoving another snack into his mouth. "But that brings up an interesting point."

"Aizen has something to do with my revival," Ulquiorra concluded.

"I hope this doesn't make you want to return to him," Urahara said darkly.

"Aizen throws away subordinates that fail to be useful to him any longer," Ulquiorra said. "No matter how loyal they are to him. Regardless of what purpose he would offer me, he lacks my interest. Those with hearts do not throw their companions away so easily."

Urahara chuckled. "I see. What an interesting reply, Mr. Arrancar. It's almost like you're trying to say that you have people you care about and wouldn't dream of betraying them."

"Hilarious," Ulquiorra said with a grimace. "That you assume I could form human attachments."

Urahara was about to reply, when Orihime entered the room. She touched Ulquiorra's arm as she did so. Ulquiorra tried to not make a sound from her surprise touch, and clenched his teeth to prevent it.

Urahara's expression changed to one of mischief. "Oh hello Orihime! We were just discussing you."

Ulquiorra snapped a glare in Urahara's direction, who merely gave a smirk in reply.

"Me?" Orihime asked.

"About the attacks that will be directed towards you," Ulquiorra clarified. _Before this girl gets the wrong idea…damn you Urahara._

"You're no fun," Urahara sighed.

"Attacks against me? Why? What did I do?" Orihime asked in distress. "I thought Aizen was defeated! What do the arrancar want with me? I thought Aizen didn't need me anymore because-"

"It is not you they want," Ulquiorra interrupted. "It's me. They now will target you in an attempt to convince me to go back with them. A meaningless effort. Your death is inconsequential to my decision."

"You…you don't care about me?"

Ulquiorra's eyes shot wide open at Orihime's quiet comment. Urahara raised his eyebrows and covered his mouth with his hand, hiding a smirk.

Ulquiorra's cheeks turned an odd pinkish color. Had Ulquiorra known his face could blush, he would have been more mortified than he already was. _Damn it damn it damn it damn it! Say something! What do I say?_

"It's fine, I figured it was this way," Orihime said as she looked into her hands. She smiled, but Ulquiorra knew that this was a forced one. It lacked her usual warmth. "What should I do?" She asked Urahara. "I don't want Uryu to-"

"I will protect her," Ulquiorra managed to say.

Orihime didn't reply. Her eyes began to glass over, as if she was staring far away.

Urahara pushed himself away from his desk and gestured for Ulquiorra to follow him. Orihime stayed put, suddenly very gloomy, but Ulquiorra followed into the shop's large storage room.

"You gotta learn how to express yourself," Urahara said.

"This has nothing to do with-" Ulquiorra began to say.

"This has everything to do with it," Urahara said as he began to rifle through boxes. "You gotta tell her how you feel about her."

 _Feel? About her? What does he mean by this? How do I tell the girl something I don't know what it is?_ "I don't understand," Ulquiorra said.

Urahara tossed aside the box he was looking through and started rifling through another. "You talk a lot about your eyes seeing things and all that exists is reflected in them. Since you can't apply it to the human heart, why don't you tell her what you see about her, and why it's important to you."

"She is not imp-"

Urahara slammed a box closed and glared at Ulquiorra. "Cut the crap, Mr. Arrancar. It boggles my mind how you can function normally when she's all that goes on in that head of yours." He started laughing. "I think you'd stop breathing if you stopped thinking about her. I don't think you understand how much you speak of her. Grimmjow is going completely out of his mind."

Ulquiorra clenched the fists he had jammed into his pockets. "Just help me protect her. It's all that matters."

Urahara grinned as he finally seemed to find what he was looking for. He pulled out an extremely average looking katana and presented it to Ulquiorra. "Tada!"

"What is this?" Ulquiorra asked.

"An _Asauchi_ …sort of," Urahara replied. "They're blank Zanpakto usually given to new recruits in order to eventually imprint their Zanpakto spirit upon it."

"Aizen gave us these," Ulquiorra replied, taking the sword from Urahara.

"Yes this may or may not be an extra one I snagged from one of Aizen's labs," Urahara said mischievously. "I analyzed it and it has a slightly different composition than normal. It probably has to do with the fact that it's supposed to also absorb your hollow forms."

"You are aware of what would happen if I released my sword in this town?" Ulquiorra inquired. "Or even, used a cero?"

"Let's just say that I'm putting my faith in your judgement," Urahara said. "And curious as to if you'll get your sword back. You _did_ die in your released state."

Ulquiorra reunited with Orihime, who was restlessly walking around Urahara's workroom. She still seemed gloomy, but she did feign a smile at them. "What's that?" She asked, pointing at Ulquiorra's new sword.

"A weapon. So I can protect you," Ulquiorra replied. "I will have to stay with you at all times."

"I agree. I am not sure how Orihime feels about a male roommate in her home," Urahara stated.

Orihime blushed. "It's fine! Really! I have room. I'm used to him watching over me anyways. He does a good job at it, he's so attentive! And this time he's doing it for your sake Urahara! I think it will be okay!" She put her hands on her hips to seem more optimistic.

Ulquiorra was not convinced.


	8. Clothes

"Please sit down, Rukia. It's a pleasure to see you as always."

Rukia Kuchiki kneeled down in front of her 13th squad captain Jushiro Ukitake. He was dressed in his typical captain's uniform, his long white hair neatly brushed and framing his handsome face. His green eyes were soft and friendly, always putting Rukia at ease. He gestured towards some tea and snacks, telling her to help herself.

"If you don't mind me asking, Captain," Rukia said a bit hastily. "But why have you called for me?"

Ukitake smiled warmly. "Oh come now! You _are_ my new Lieutenant, after all. Surely you realize that you would be spending more time with me."

Rukia took a sip of her tea. "It's…difficult adjusting to my new position, sir. I often feel unqualified."

"Don't sell yourself short, Rukia," Ukitake said. "You are very capable. Now, as you did rightfully did guess this wasn't just for a chat, although I wish that was the case." He sighed. "I hate to ask something so difficult of you, but I need you to do something for me."

"Anything, Captain," Rukia said eagerly. She wished to prove herself not only to Squad 13, but to her brother Byakuya, who had adamantly opposed Rukia's promotion.

"I need you to visit the world of the living," Ukitake said.

"Unusual request, sir," Rukia said. Normally seated officers didn't make a visit to the living world unless something catastrophic was happening. As far as she knew, nothing out of the ordinary had been going on since Aizen's defeat.

"It is in regards to Ichigo Kurosaki."

Rukia's heart skipped a beat. _Ichigo…_

"Since you were the closest to him, and have spent the longest time in the world of the living, I thought it would be best for you to check on him," Ukitake explained. "You are not to meet him face to face, but you at least could observe his state of being, to make sure nothing is out of the ordinary. And while you're there…" He added. "…please check on Kisuke Urahara. He has been involved in a rather…eccentric project, and he probably could use the assistance. Our squad suffered some of the least casualties, so I can spare you for the time being."

Rukia didn't know how to respond. She nibbled on a snack and stared blankly at the table. _Can I see Ichigo again?_ she thought. _Will I be able to be strong seeing him as a normal human? Or will I be unable to handle the pain?_

"Rukia," Ukitake said gently. Rukia looked up and saw a sad, apologetic look on his face. "If you are not up to the task, you are more than welcome to decline. I can send someone else."

Rukia gathered her resolve. "No Captain. It has to be me. I'll go to him."

* * *

"Do you want to shower?" Orihime asked Ulquiorra when they had arrived back at her apartment. It was very late, as Urahara had some things to discuss with Ulquiorra, most likely involving rules or parameters regarding his guard duty of Orihime. Ulquiorra also had brought his belongings, which consisted of a very small box, containing toiletries, his wallet, and container of Soul Candy. The gigai with its artificial soul had been sitting in front of Orihime's locked apartment, obviously waiting for its owner to come back for it. She couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for it, although she knew that it wasn't a real soul like Kon's, despite being contained in a similar object. The gigai, once let inside, sat down on the floor and stared at the wall.

Ulquiorra was standing in the middle of Orihime's apartment, his eyes scanning the room. He was filthy, his yukata and skin stained with dirt, sweat, and blood. He was also barefooted, and Orihime wondered if Urahara had even offered him shoes. _He could have at least tried to take care of him!_

He turned his head to look at Orihime after she spoke. "Yes. A shower would be preferable."

"I-I'll show you where everything is…" Orihime said a bit nervously. She led him to the bathroom and instructed him on which towels and what soaps he could use. "I only have strawberry shampoo!" She blushed. "And girly soaps…I don't have manly soaps but we'll have to go get some later!"

"Does that matter?" Ulquiorra inquired. He inspected the strawberry shampoo bottle and opened the cap with gentle fingers. He took a cautious smell of the shampoo, then looked at Orihime confused. "This smells like food."

Orihime giggled. "Have you have had fun soap like this before?!"

"Everything in Hueco Mundo was boring," Ulquiorra explained. "Even the soap was just plain white bars. Half the arrancar hardly bathed, and it was disgusting. I've never seen soap like this. So you use different soap for different parts of your body?" He began reading the label.

Orihime blinked and instructed Ulquiorra on how to use shampoo, conditioner ( _His hair could totally use the conditioner!_ she thought) and body wash. She then showed him how to operate her shower and left, asking him if he was hungry. He responded positively, so she left to the kitchen to make something.

She heard the shower start from the other room. Her heartbeat quickened at the thought that an arrancar was naked in the other room in her apartment. Who would have thought that the former loyal Espada to Aizen would now be her friend asking her how to use shampoo! She shook her head. Ulquiorra wasn't her friend, he had said that to her. He was just here protecting her on Urahara's orders…

_What about his heart?_

Orihime sighed and looked in her fridge. She had some red bean buns she had leftover from a bakery run a few days prior, some leftover pork belly, and some curry. She pulled all three out and decided to top the red bean buns with it.

By the time she had finished heating it all up, the shower had stopped. She placed the food at the table and went to the kitchen to get some utensils. On her way back, she nearly ran into Ulquiorra, who was dressed in nothing but a towel around his waist.

"Ah!" Orihime cried. Her face turned pink with embarrassment. Had Ulquiorra been taller, she would have face planted into his chest. However, he was only several inches taller than her at best, so it would have been an unfortunate headbutt. Luckily she caught herself before this had happened, but she _did_ drop her spoon.

Ulquiorra bent down to pick up the spoon and handed it to her. Orihime took a nervous step backwards and took the spoon. Ulquiorra gave no reaction, but his eyes looked towards the table. "Is that for me?" He asked.

Orihime nodded and handed him a clean spoon. "For you!"

Ulquiorra thanked her quickly and kneeled down at the table. Orihime couldn't believe that this arrancar was now _sitting nearly naked at her table._ She kneeled down across from him and couldn't help but stare. It was a bit unsettling. He gave off the normal air that Komori gave off when they were in school, but his inhuman appearance made it feel uncanny. Upon observing him, she suddenly realized what was missing: _the number four on his chest!_

"Ulquiorra," Orihime bravely said.

"Hm?" He responded, his mouth full.

"Where did your number tattoo go?"

Ulquiorra finished chewing and then swallowed. He looked down at his left pectoral and said, "I don't know. It was gone when I woke up."

"Does it bother you?" She asked.

"I do not need it," he replied. "It was just a marker set upon me by Aizen. It wasn't just about strength. He branded us because we were his property."

Orihime's heart hurt for him and the other arrancar forced to work under Aizen. Some of them didn't even want to commit acts of violence, like Nel, and some of them just wanted a place to belong like Ulquiorra. "Well you're cute with or without it!" She blurted out without thinking.

Ulquiorra's expression changed to one of confusion.

 _Did I just call him cute? To his face?!_ Orihime started laughing nervously. "Aha I meant good for you you look great with or without it I mean you're no longer under Aizen so why should it be there I mean-"

Ulquiorra had apparently zoned out and had continued eating.

Orihime exhaled and finished her dinner.

After dinner Orihime went to do the dishes, and Ulquiorra inquired if there was a place for him to wash his yukata and uniform. Orihime told him there was a central laundry that everyone shared but it cost money to use. She told him she had laundry she had to do anyways so she would help him with it once she was done.

"You cant walk out in just a towel!" Orihime scolded him.

"No one can see me," he pointed out.

"I-I can see you!" Orihime blushed. "And what would people say if the washing machine suddenly started without anyone there? People would think there were ghosts or a demon haunting this place!"

"That wouldn't be far from the truth," Ulquiorra pointed out.

"You're not a demon," Orihime told him as she picked up her full laundry basket. She tossed his yukata and the gigai's (who now was naked and resumed its sitting in the corner) uniform on top, alongside her favorite flowery scented detergents.

"You are such a strange girl," Ulquiorra said as he opened the front door for Orihime.

"Technically I'm not supposed to be making noise this late," she explained as they arrived at the laundry room. "But if we're careful it will be fine. Plus the landlord is super nice!"

She began humming as she filled one of the washers with her clothing. She blushed when she picked up Ulquiorra's pair of black underwear. She then realized something. "Ulquiorra do you only own one pair of underwear?" She asked after she had started the washer.

"I only have the one uniform," he replied. "I wash it every day as Urahara instructed."

Orihime facepalmed. Urahara obviously did not realize how outside of human needs and behaviors the arrancar were-Ulquiorra especially. He seemed the least human or even _aware_ out of all of them Orihime had noticed. "We need to get you some clothes tomorrow," she said firmly. "Good thing its the weekend!"

"I do not need-"

"You need clothes Ulquiorra," Orihime said as if she was scolding a small child. "You have to have at least a few outfits, especially if we are going to be together on the weekends all the time."

"Fine," he relented. He then became enamoured by the glass door of the front load washing machine. Had he gone any closer to the running machine, he would have smashed his face against the glass.

"How long will this take?" Ulquiorra asked.

"Oh about half an hour," Orihime said. She took out a kitchen timer and set it for the remaining wash time. "We can go back to my room now and do something else while we wait."

They returned, and Orihime went directly to the kitchen. "Do you want some tea?"

"If you believe it to be beneficial," Ulquiorra replied. He was looking around Orihime's living room again. He picked up the picture of her older brother Sora and looked at it closely. Orihime gulped and nearly burned herself on the hot boiling water she was pouring into mugs for them over bags of herbal tea. Ulquiorra looked strangely appealing, standing in the middle of her livingroom, his white skin exposed save for the pink towel neatly tucked around his waist.

"Who is this?" Ulquiorra finally asked when Orihime returned to the livingroom.

Orihime set down the mugs of tea and a little plastic bear full of honey. "Uhm…that's my older brother Sora," she said. "He died several years ago. I've been living by myself ever since. But uhm…" _The last time I saw him he…_

Ulquiorra put the picture back in its proper place. "Continue. Something troubles you."

"He was a hollow and he tried to eat me!" She grinned dismissively.

Ulquiorra's eyes widened. "Were you…afraid of him?"

Orihime shook her head. "No. He was in so much pain I couldn't bear it. He fought so hard not to bring me harm. Ichigo sent him off to the Soul Society though, and I was so glad!"

"Foolish girl, you have no sense of self preservation," Ulquiorra scolded. "You cannot keep trying to befriend hollows."

Orihime felt pain from his words. He was so mean! She thought he understood what she meant by a heart finally, but his words didn't seem to match what she thought his emotions were.

"I guess I really am dumb huh?" Orihime said, tears glistening in her eyes.

Ulquiorra's expression changed again to one of worry. He appeared unable to find a reply.

Orihime sighed, defeated, and took a sip of her tea.

* * *

Ulquiorra awoke the next morning with the sun. He barely slept, and it wasn't due to discomfort. Orihime had given him a futon to sleep on in the livingroom. His mind kept reeling, obsessing with ways on how to speak to Orihime properly. Her story about her brother shocked him. How could she forgive hollows and not fear them after what they had done to someone so important to her? How could she look at Ulquiorra and not feel anger and resentment? He himself had done terrible things to her and her friends, yet she was willing to help him without any reservation. She was either the stupidest or the bravest woman he had ever seen.

He had slept in his hollow body, now back wearing the clean white yukata. The gigai was still sitting in the corner staring at the wall. _Urahara and his idiotic jokes,_ Ulquiorra thought angrily. Urahara had programmed the Soul Candy to mimic Ulquiorra's reaction to Orihime's initial rejection when idle, and Ulquiorra found it insulting. Grimmjow thought it was funny, and the two nearly got into a fight over it. Urahara refused to reprogram the Candy.

He wandered towards the kitchen to look for food, but stopped when he saw Orihime's bedroom door ajar. Curious, he quietly opened it.

Orihime was fast asleep in her bed, surrounded by many fluffy blankets, pillows, and stuffed animals. Ulquiorra found something quite peaceful about the sight of her. He reached out a hand towards her face, but pulled away before his fingertips barely brushed her cheek.

She began to stir, so Ulquiorra bolted out of her room before she could see him there. She didn't wake up, however. He was hungry but found nothing he recognized in the fridge (and he didn't know how to cook, nor did he know what ingredients made what), so instead he decided to find something to pass the time. He scoured her bookshelf and saw this "manga" that Kurosaki had borrowed, and he opened it up.

He was a bit taken aback by the fact that it was made from pictures. It took some adjusting to reading it, but he found it fascinating. Instead of words to describe what things looked like, the book simply showed you, and used dialogue effectively to express ideas. It was some kind of manga set in an older human time period, where technology was not as advanced. The characters used steam technology upon other magical substances to function in their daily life activities. Ulquiorra had read similar books to this before that had belonged to Aizen, but not in this Manga form. Ulquiorra flipped the volume over to look at the cover. It had a girl drawn on the front, wearing a blue dress with a butterfly wing like pattern, and it was decorated with bronze machine cogs. The title read "Machine Society", volume 3. _Oh so there are ones before this…_ He thought. No wonder the story wasn't making much sense. He returned to the bookshelf looking for the other volumes when he was interrupted by an awake Orihime.

"Oh, good morning!" She yawned. She smiled. "Were you reading that? Tatsuki has the first few volumes of it. Maybe we can go see her today! Come to think of it you really haven't talked to her much have you?"

Ulquiorra blinked. He was _slightly_ curious about the manga, but he was more interested in Orihime than anything else.

"Breakfast time!" Orihime announced. She went into the fridge and then frowned. "Oh…I guess I'm out of food! Guess I'll have to go grocery shopping now." Her stomach grumbled and she smiled sheepishly.

"Could we go to the bakery?" Ulquiorra requested. He was shocked that a preference or a request for anything had come out of his mouth.

Orihime seemed startled too. But she beamed anyways. "Okay! Today we will go do a bunch of shopping! Because you need clothes too. I'll call Tatsuki and see if she wants to join us."

Orihime had made sure that Ulquiorra did not wear the complete school uniform so that there was at least an attempt to hide the fact he was wearing one. She didn't let him wear the jacket or the tie, and she untucked his white shirt. Since it was now the end of fall, the weather was quite chilly, so Orihime had Ulquiorra borrow one of her oversized sweatshirts. It was a man's green sweatshirt, but she had bought it because it was so soft, and she thought wearing it would be like a blanket. It wouldn't have fit someone like Ichigo, but on Ulquiorra it fit perfectly due to his petite size. Orihime also lent him one of her warm knitted scarves, this one white and fluffy.

Ulquiorra peeked out at her from the white scarf. He looked a bit sheepish. "I did not realize you had to dress like this to ward off the cold. I thought it was something people just bore with until they could go inside. The cold only affects me in the gigai, and not my true form." He shook his head and loosened the knot Orihime had tied in his scarf around his neck. "These human bodies are quite troublesome."

Orihime had a sudden realization. "Oh no…Ulquiorra, does your regeneration not work when in the gigai?"

"It does not," Ulquiorra replied.

Orihime gasped. "Oh no I'm so sorry! I didn't realize! When your arm was hurt I could have healed it! I thought you were just pretending to wear it to fit in or something. I-"

"You had no reason to," Ulquiorra said as he opened the front door for Orihime.

Orihime grabbed her purse and walked out the door. "But…you were in pain."

"Pain is not my preference, no," Ulquiorra replied. "Pain is an extended sensation in this body and I am unaccustomed to it."

"You poor thing!" Orihime exclaimed, grabbing Ulquiorra's hand. "I'm really sorry! Next time for sure I'll make you feel better."

His eyes glanced towards her hand and he gripped it a bit tighter in response.

The two walked down the road for a bit wordlessly, holding hands again as they did so. Orihime only began thinking of it when an old woman passing by smiled and remarked what a lovely couple they were. Orihime immediately blushed and released Ulquiorra's hand, pulling away quickly like she had accidentally touched a hot stove.

Ulquiorra was shocked at her actions and gave her an almost pained look. He stuck his now free hand in his pocket and said nothing.

"Oh I'm sorry!" Orihime exclaimed. "I didn't mean to-"

"You did nothing so why should you apologize?" Ulquiorra said harshly. "Foolish girl."

Orihime gripped her purse with both hands, looked at the sidewalk, and sighed.

They soon arrived at the bakery. Orihime's spirits were immediately lifted upon the smell of freshly baked morning bagels and the rich scent of brewed coffee. There were several other customers enjoying their breakfast there, making the bakery somewhat noisy. Ulquiorra didn't react much on the outside, but Orihime could begin to tell subtle changes in his eyes due to his mood. Ulquiorra definitely was excited to be there, which made Orihime feel even better.

"Two coffees and bagels please!" Orihime requested. She reached into her purse to grab her wallet, but Ulquiorra stepped up with his.

"I will purchase it," he said, putting cash down on the counter so quickly Orihime wondered if he had used a Sonido somehow in his gigai.

The cashier, who was a friendly looking middle aged woman, smiled warmly. "Ah what a good boyfriend you have Orihime!" She said. "So considerate!"

Orihime smiled, blushed, and went to sit down to wait.

"Boyfriend?" Ulquiorra asked in his usual soft and quiet voice.

Orihime's heart skipped a beat. _This is so embarrassing! Everyone thinks we're a couple! This is so silly!_ "Uhm…it's what they call a guy that spends a lot of time with you and takes care of you and cares about you and thinks you're beautiful and takes you out on dates and he-"

"Does that make me your boyfriend?"

Orihime let the question settle with her for a few moments. She had to think of a way to explain it so that he could understand. He didn't understand human emotions very well, so his grasp on the idea of a _special_ relationship outside of friendship would be limited. "No because we're not in…" she started to say, but found herself unable to finish her sentence for some reason.

"No? Then what would a proper human term be?" Ulquiorra inquired.

"We-we're friends!" She insisted. She swallowed the lump in her throat forming. This was a difficult situation. It would be easy for her to start falling for this arrancar, due to his attractive face, his composed nature, and his gentle attentive side he showed only her. But she knew, especially from that interaction at Urahara's, that Ulquiorra did not feel love towards her. He said he wouldn't care if she died! _He is only here to learn about humans from you and try his best to assimilate,_ she had to tell herself to keep her confused feelings at bay.

"Categorizing me with Kurosaki," Ulquiorra said with some disgust. "I suppose that is fine if you lack a better term. I seem to occupy more of your time than others, however."

Orihime was saved by the distraction of their breakfast being served.

* * *

"Oh hey Orihime! I hardly see you outside of school lately," said Tatsuki. "I got your message about the manga and brought it with me."

Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed. This was Orihime's _best_ friend Tatsuki. Apparently there were different rankings for friends. The boyfriend rank seemed so important and hard to obtain. If he could just obtain such a rank, perhaps he could be validated in her warm presence.

"Oh yeah, Komori is with you," Tatsuki continued.

"You could speak directly to me," Ulquiorra said.

Tatsuki blushed. "Oh! Yeah. Sorry…" she mumbled.

Ulquiorra took Orihime's hand in his. Holding hands seemed to give people the impression that he was Orihime's boyfriend, and he sort of _liked_ it. And right now he felt this odd need to prove himself to Tatsuki, almost like the feeling he had when he challenged Ichigo to their battle.

Orihime blushed and looked the other way, but she didn't pull away from him.

The three had met at the mall in Karakura Town, where Orihime had hoped to go clothes shopping for Ulquiorra. Of course she hadn't told Tatsuki she was there mainly to shop for Ulquiorra, as that would have been even more awkward than the situation already was.

Orihime found a pair of jeans, a few t-shirts, a sweater, and of course underwear for Ulquiorra. He was an easy fit due to his slender body, and most anything seemed to look good on him. He didn't complain when asked to try on new things, although he preferred clothing that allowed him to move his arms freely (because he didn't want to be hindered from hand to hand combat movement if necessary in the gigai). Ulquiorra paid for everything, Orihime in wonder about how much money he actually had. Ulquiorra explained that he hardly spent any money Urahara had given him, so the amount began to stack up.

Ulquiorra also was bought his own shampoo and soaps, but he had a preference for the more girly scents over the harsher male ones. _They smell like her…_ he thought. So why wouldn't it be preferable for him to use? Orihime seemed a bit nervous about it, but Ulquiorra insisted, and now he would smell like Cherry Blossoms and Peaches after every shower, which seemed like a good idea to him. He couldn't understand why Orihime thought this was so strange.

"Orihime is he your boyfriend?!" Tatsuki finally confronted them after they had finished their shopping trip and were walking, bags in hand, back towards Orihime's.

Orihime was as red as a tomato. "N-no Tatsuki you got it wrong we are just friends I-"

"Yeah right! You've been holding his hand since we got here," Tatsuki said.

"Is there a problem if we are?" Ulquiorra spoke up.

"Uh…no I guess," Tatsuki admitted. "It would just be kind of a shock. Orihime's been in love with Ichigo forever."

At the mention of Kurosaki's name, Ulquiorra released Orihime's hand and stuck his own back into his pocket. "I see," he said quietly. "For clarification we are _not_ in this 'boyfriend' type of relationship."

Tatsuki's brows were furrowed but she seemed satisfied. "Okay then…" she said.

Tatsuki didn't make much small talk with Ulquiorra, which the latter didn't mind at all. He had nothing to say to her, and had a preference to simply listen to her and Orihime's conversations. Ulquiorra did feel relieved when Tatsuki finally departed, so he was able to focus his energy onto the person who was much more important.

Ulquiorra carried everything, refusing to allow Orihime to carry any of his belongings. She seemed awkward about this too, but he ignored her pleas.

When they arrived back at Orihime's apartment, it was the middle of the afternoon. Ulquiorra carefully dropped the bags in the corner of the livingroom. Orihime's stomach grumbled loudly, and she blushed again.

"O-oh no! We skipped lunch," Orihime said, flustered. "I was so focused on shopping that I totally forgot to-"

Ulquiorra looked at the watch he stole from Urahara. "The stores are still open."

Orihime sighed. "You're not mad?"

"Why would I be angry over something so trivial? I hardly noticed," Ulquiorra responded with some confusion. He shook his head. "You have spent nearly all day at my expense, and it caused inconvenience to yourself. If you should be apologizing, it should be to yourself. Come on, let's go. Your fridge is dismally empty."

 _This girl…_ Ulquiorra thought. _Is in more danger than I realized._


	9. Hunger

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the support so far! It makes me happy that you enjoy the story. :)
> 
> (A little warning, the story will get a bit more violent from here on out, and I might end up tagging it with a violence warning in the future if it gets too bad.)

"Hey Ichigo."

Ichigo, who was trying to catch up on some more difficult reading during lunch, looked up to see Tatsuki who had kneeled beside him. The weather was chilly, but the skies were clear enough for everyone to eat outside without fear of being rained on. "Oh…Tatsuki..." Ichigo said quietly. "Why aren't you with Orihime and the other girls? Don't you usually have lunch with them?"

"I only hang out with the other girls cuz of Orihime," Tatsuki replied, sitting down cross-legged next to Ichigo. "But now all Orihime does is be with that Komori guy. Hell I even went shopping with them the other day and they held hands nearly the entire time!"

Ichigo's heart skipped a beat. He stole a glance towards Orihime, who as he expected was eating lunch with just Komori. She was chatting to him about something, and he seemed strangely, almost inhumanly unresponsive. "Is that guy a robot?" Ichigo grimaced. "Good for her getting a boyfriend I guess but…really?"

"That's the weird part," Tatsuki said. "He's awfully clingy but he totally flat out denied them being in a romantic relationship!"

Ichigo witnessed Orihime spoon-feed something to Komori. "Are…are you serious?" He asked, bewildered. "You're kidding…"

"Isn't it strange?" Tatsuki clenched her fists. "I don't even think Orihime is happy about it! I see her reaction sometimes when he speaks to her. He never even smiles! But she keeps spending time with him? Is this some kind of joke? Is he doing something to her? I just feel so…helpless…" Her voice trailed off, the last word quiet.

Ichigo felt a pain stab his heart. He, out of all people, knew exactly how it felt to be helpless. Hell, he couldn't even _see_ a threat from a Hollow anymore, let alone stop it. He always felt vulnerable and paranoid. He knew his family was safe because of his father Isshin, but…something inside him still felt worthless. He also knew that he had a nasty habit of pushing Tatsuki away from him, when that's the last thing Tatsuki would want him to do. And now Orihime seemed to be hiding something from her. It seemed…unfair. "You're right Tatsuki, something _is_ off about Orihime and that Komori guy," Ichigo admitted. "I've been trying to figure out what's wrong, but for the life of me I can't figure it out. I've tried asking but she almost keeps deflecting." He sighed and poked at his half-eaten lunch.

"You know who I saw with Orihime a lot before she started being with Komori?" Tatsuki remarked. "Uryu. Maybe he knows something about her sudden mood change."

_Oh yeah, Uryu._ "Great," Ichigo said sarcastically. He was still struggling with his recent jealousy of the Quincy's job of exterminating hollows.

"Ichigo, I thought you guys were friends," Tatsuki said.

"Yeah I _guess_ ," Ichigo said.

"You can at least _talk_ to you friends every once in a while you know!" Tatsuki scolded.

"Okay! Okay, we'll ask him later," Ichigo said.

As promised, after school Ichigo approached Uryu in front of the school.

"Uh…what is it Ichigo?" Uryu asked. He visibly looked a bit awkward as he adjusted his glasses.

"Hey uh, I wanna ask about Orihime," Ichigo said.

Tatsuki was standing behind him and glared at Uryu as if trying to telepathically beat an answer out of him.

"Why are you asking me, Ichigo?" Uryu said, irritated.

"Because you're literally the last friend Orihime's had one on one time with that hasn't been that creep Komori!" Ichigo snapped. "I'm sick of not knowing what's going on but I'm worried sick about her." He blushed. He couldn't believe he verbally just admitted that out loud to _Uryu_ of all people.

"I've been giving her space," Uryu said, his voice quiet and calm. "She…wants to spend time with that-Komori, Ichigo. And despite me _loathing_ the fact she is, it's not my place to tell her how to live her life."

"You think something's weird about him too!" Exclaimed Tatsuki.

Uryu turned red and adjusted his glasses. "L-listen it's complicated okay!"

"I know you've had a huge crush on Orihime forever," Tatsuki said (Ichigo was genuinely shocked by this information). "So it must be pretty hard for you to see her with another guy. But what doesn't make sense is why you'd let her be with someone you think will hurt her!"

"You can't and won't understand, okay?" Uryu said, his voice raising and getting emotional. He started walking quickly towards home.

"Come back here you still haven't given us any-"

Ichigo put a hand on Tatsuki's shoulder to stop her from rushing at Uryu. "Forget it. Nobody's going to tell us anything." He then started his walk home.

Tatsuki caught up with Ichigo. "H-hey wait up…" she said, rushing after him. "I don't have practice today. Wanna…go somewhere or something?"

Ichigo normally would have refused, but something tugged at his heart. "Sure," he agreed, the first smile in a long while creeping slightly onto his face.

* * *

"He's so…sad…"

Rukia was perched on the school rooftop looking out at the students gathered for lunch. She was watching Ichigo sit alone, slowly eating one of the delicious lunches she knew Yuzu packed for him. Her eyes scanned the area for Ichigo's friends.

Chad was sitting with Ichigo's normal male friend group, Uryu technically in this friend group as well but not actively participating in the conversation. Tatsuki and Chizuru were with a group of Orihime's friends, but she was not present. Rukia found it odd to find Orihime sitting in a secluded corner with…a boy? She wished she could see his face. There was something oddly familiar about him.

"Hey I thought Orihime had a thing for Ichigo," Renji remarked, suddenly appearing behind Rukia.

Rukia, startled, lost her balance and yelped, regaining her footing. "You idiot! I nearly fell off the roof! Warn me next time before you come creeping up on me!" After she had hit Renji in protest, she sighed. "Yeah. Maybe that's why Ichigo seems so sad. Maybe Orihime getting a boyfriend made him depressed? No…no that's not it at all. That's not like Ichigo."

"I seem to recall you saying…Ichigo had a crush on _you_ , Rukia," Renji said quietly.

Rukia's heart skipped a beat as she looked sadly down at the red-headed human boy. "That's right…" she said softly. Pain filled her heart as she observed the boy she had grown close to, now a world apart where she could never reach him.

"You're way too old for him," Renji remarked. "Totally out of his league."

"Of course I know that you idiot!" Rukia cried. "Your stupid commentary isn't making this any easier! He's…such a boy yet he's suffered so much. I can't help but feel it's my fault."

Renji put a reassuring hand on Rukia's shoulder. "Listen to me. None of it was your fault. You helped him achieve so much to protect the ones he loved. It was that bastard Aizen that-"

Rukia's cellphone buzzed. "A hollow?" She said, looking at the screen.

"Let's take care of it so Chad and Uryu don't have to skip class," Renji said, drawing his zanpakto.

The hollow was trivial, easily defeated with a single lazy blow from Renji, nearly cleaving it in two. "That was underwhelming," he growled. "I haven't been in a good fight for months. And now with Urahara all protective of the arrancar I cant even-"

"Would you shut up?" Rukia snapped. "Be glad that we are fortunate to have some semblance of peace! Speaking of Urahara, we should check up with him. We're near the shop anyways."

* * *

_Kisuke walked down the long staircase to a bunker deep underground. It was hidden incredibly well, remnants of kido and other strong sealing devices, somehow broken apart by a powerful force._

_The first room was an office, with a desk and chair covered with a thick layer of dust. The dust seemed to have been smudged by something recently, indicating there had been visitors before Kisuke had arrived. The most interesting thing about that room was the futon on the far wall with pictures plastered above it. He chuckled to himself when he saw that they were all pictures of him, defaced in some manner. He didn't bother to take any of them, and simply left them there, proof of the driving force called hatred._

_Kisuke wandered further down the hall, holding up his lantern. The lighting system had been destroyed somehow, frayed wires protruding from the ceiling corners. There were several large test tubes, some cracked with glowing liquid coming from them, others empty, which Kisuke assumed was taken by Squad 12 for analysis._

_The largest and central tube was completely empty, glass shattered in every direction. Kisuke assumed this was the epicenter for the destructive force due to the splattered pattern of the glowing liquid on the walls. There was dried blood on the glass and spilled on the floor. "Well someone got hurt here," he remarked. "I wonder who that could be."_

_His eyes glanced towards a binder tucked away near the glass tube. Kisuke flipped through it, a realization hitting him…_

_"So that's what you're playing at."_

Kisuke tucked the binder he had found in that dark underground lab into his desk drawer. He then locked it with a spirit energy sealed invention of his to prevent unwanted eyes from seeing it.

Oh, the secrets he had to keep for the sake of the world. Kisuke sighed and grabbed for a box of pocky. If anything, eating always mad him feel better. Maybe he should take another nap…

A garganta opened in his workroom, his previous depressive drowsiness converting into annoyed anger. "GRIMMJOW I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO NEVER OPEN THOSE THINGS IN MY WORKROOM!"

"SHUT UP OLD MAN!" Grimmjow yelled. "I FORGOT OKAY I GOT A LOT OF SHIT ON MY PLATE!"

Nel stepped through the garganta behind Grimmjow. "Honestly he insisted on opening the portal for me, although I knew that he'd make a stupid mistake like this. This was my fault and lack of good judgement in trusting this idiot to do it."

"You wanna fight, ya bitch?" Grimmjow snapped.

"Oh, I'd love to see you try, _number 6,"_ Nel taunted.

"Don't talk like that, you make it seem like you want it," Grimmjow snarled.

"Would you kindly take your violent hollowfied flirting to the training room please?" Kisuke requested. "Just don't get her pregnant, okay? Actually no wait, I don't know if arrancar _can_ get pregnant, that would be an interesting study."

"Way off base there!" Grimmjow said, his face red as he slammed his fist onto Kisuke's desk. He apparently expected to break it, and was shocked that it still was in one piece.

"You cant break open this desk it contains too many important secrets of mine," Kisuke grinned. "Now give me the Hueco Mundo report before you go play with your girlfriend."

"She is not my-"

Nel moved Grimmjow aside. "Halibel has reported some distressing news. Fights have broken out in Las Noches. Some arrancar are still under loyalty to Aizen, despite the influence of his zanpakto no longer affecting them. They aren't easy to subdue, and we did assist Halibel calm down the most recent raid. She fears they may resort to more drastic measures to recruit her to her side."

"That's not good," Kisuke said. "Ulquiorra's guard duties might get even trickier. Wasn't Orihime the person who saved Halibel and her fracciones?"

"Great, so that's why Halibel is so hellbent on making this work," Grimmjow groaned. "Of course it was that girl Orihime. Of course. She's like a damn arrancar whisperer or somethin'."

"Not all arrancar are hopelessly violent, Grimmjow," Nel said. "Some of us enjoy peace and reading and-"

Grimmjow had grabbed onto her long green hair and yanked it. "Get off your high horse, dammit," he said.

"Ow! You're hurting me!" Nel whimpered. "Ah-jokes on you I'm a masochist!"

Grimmjow blushed and released his grip on her hair, sticking his hands in his pockets. "Why do you gotta be so damn weird," he muttered.

Kisuke didn't know how to respond to this strange budding arrancar romance, so he tried his best to ignore it. "If Orihime is also connected to Halibel...things are gonna get real tricky for her…really fast."

_Will…Ulquiorra be able to handle this?_

* * *

"You've been reading that manga a lot. Do you like it?"

Ulquiorra put down the volume of Machine Society he was reading. He had easily read the first few volumes, and was working on the fourth one. He wasn't sure if he had a preference for it or not. He simply found it _interesting_. Maybe…interesting is what preference was? He wasn't certain. "Perhaps," he replied cryptically.

"Don't you wanna sit somewhere more comfy?" Orihime asked him. Ulquiorra was sitting on the floor, his back to the wall. He had left his gigai behind, preferring his stronger form when in the apartment to simply deter low level attacks from approaching them. He also wanted to spend as much time with his blank zanpakto as possible.

"Perhaps," Ulquiorra replied again.

"Is that really all you're gonna say?" Orihime said with a frown.

"What else would you have me say?" Ulquiorra inquired.

"I don't know, tell me what you're thinking I guess," Orihime said. "I'm not all that smart and can tell what people are thinking by just looking at them, you know. Maybe Aizen was but-"

"Why is what I'm thinking so interesting to you?" Ulquiorra asked.

Orihime's eyes gave a worried expression. "You've been by my side for a week now, but you don't talk much. I know you're thinking hard about everything, and I'm worried about you."

_It's not me you should be worried about…_ "Foolish girl," he muttered.

"Stop that!" Orihime said, her voice having a sudden shift towards anger.

Ulquiorra was taken aback.

"I-I'm not foolish, I know I'm not!" Orihime snapped. "You're the foolish one! You're…you're pushing me away..." She added sheepishly at the end.

She might as well have slapped him. To be honest, Ulquiorra probably would have preferred it.

Was she right? Ulquiorra began to feel a sense of panic. She was the person he wanted the _least_ distance from. Yet whenever he felt that distance begin to close, he panicked. He had no capability to verbalize anything he was _feeling_. This sensation was _disgusting_. He almost preferred death to this uncertainty.

_"Tell her what you see…"_

He couldn't take this anymore. Ulquiorra grabbed both of Orihime's hands and kneeled facing her. He looked into her eyes, a lump forming in his throat as he did so. _Apparently_ that malfunction was not exclusive to the gigai. "I see you," he said quietly.

Orihime's fingers intertwined with his the moment after he spoke. She didn't speak, and waited patiently for him to continue.

Ulquiorra took a deep breath. "The world is reflected in my eyes, yet you are something not just my eyes can see. You have a brightness and warmth I can barely behold. I do not deserve to be in its presence. Yet, it is the only thing I ever can see." He closed his eyes and focused on the warmth of her hands. His hands he knew were cold and lifeless, just like his monstrous appearance and form. It must be uncomfortable for her to simply look at him.

He felt something warm press against his cheek. Orihime had leaned forwards and gently pressed her pursed lips against one of the hollow markings on his face. She pulled away from him slowly, her face pink and blushing.

Ulquiorra felt his whole face become warm from that gesture. "What…was that?" He asked, his voice wavering from its usual monotone.

"A k-kiss," Orihime stammered.

"That is an odd gesture," Ulquiorra replied. His chest was _pounding_. "What exactly is its function?"

"I guess its for…expressing your feelings for someone," Orihime said, looking away from him.

"Feelings," Ulquiorra remarked. "I don't understand."

Orihime sighed and let go of Ulquiorra's hands. "I'm going to bed," she said as she stood up. "Good night, Ulquiorra."

Ulquiorra was left alone, feeling suddenly cold by her departure.

He was a bit frustrated. He didn't understand Orihime's actions at all. This kiss she gave him expressed her feelings. But…which feelings? Does she hate him? Is it a feeling of pity? Loneliness?

She used her mouth against his skin. It was similar to the feeling he had when she held his hand in his. The mouth…it was almost like she was trying to bite him, but in a gentle non-threatening way. Hollows were created from a human's instinct and sorrow. Perhaps…the kiss was an intimate gesture connected to the heart, even moreso than holding hands.

Ulquiorra gave up thinking about it for now and resumed his reading. The story had been interesting so far, a way to pass the time. He especially was interested in the drawings, as he was unfamiliar with this kind of art. He wondered if he could beat some of these characters depicted in the manga in a fight, and would think of strategies in order to defeat them. He sometimes was frustrated with the heroes' lack of good judgment regarding combat.

The most interesting thing to Ulquiorra about this story was the depiction of some of the relationships the characters had with one another. He could pick out those who were friends, those who shared familiar bonds or blood, and the elusive romantic partners. Ulquiorra paid close attention to those involved in this "romance", as he needed to know what the difference was between a friend and a boyfriend.

He didn't know how late he had stayed up, or when he had fallen asleep. He was propped up against the wall, but a blanket had been draped over him. It must have been Orihime who had covered him…

"Oh good morning!" Orihime said. She was cooking something in the kitchen, and had leaned through the doorway when she had noticed he was awake. Ulquiorra's eyes locked onto her after she had resumed her focus onto the food. She was wearing an oversized purple t-shirt and a pair of very short green shorts. Her legs were bare, long, and curved nicely. For some reason, Ulquiorra was unable to take his eyes off of them.

"Do you want honey in your tea?" Orihime called to him.

"Yes," Ulquiorra replied, rubbing his eyes to distract himself from staring at her.

Orihime wandered into the livingroom with breakfast-leftover pastries with eggs on top. She had set out Ulquiorra's favorite hot sauce.

"Go ahead and eat, I want to put away some of the ingredients first," Orihime instructed him.

Ulquiorra began to eat, but his eyes looked towards Orihime again. She was standing on her tip-toes putting away something on a high shelf, her raised arms pulling her t-shirt upwards, revealing her stomach. Ulquiorra swallowed his bite of food quickly and nearly began choking, so he took a sip of his tea.

Orihime looked… _different_ this morning.

She finally sat down at the table and began eating. Ulquiorra kept watching her every movement with as much focus he would give an opponent in battle. When she was finished, she approached his side of the table and reached over him for his empty plate. She brushed him slightly with her arm and chest. Her smell seemed amplified to Ulquiorra, pleasant and alluring, almost like she was…

_…for his consumption_.

A slightly hysteric Ulquiorra didn't bother with his gigai that morning. He rushed Orihime to school by carrying her, stating he had business with Urahara, and to tell their teacher he was sick. He also instructed Uryu to take care of her, before rushing to Urahara's. Once inside the shop, he began panting.

"Where is Urahara?!" Ulquiorra demanded.

A grumpy Grimmjow appeared from the back room into the front of the store. Ulquiorra couldn't figure out why he looked so different from usual, until he realized that he was in a gigai. Nel appeared from behind the counter, also in her own human-like gigai.

"Sleeping I think," Nel replied. "His sleeping patterns are so unpredictable. He needs his rest the poor thing."

"The hell you want with him?" Grimmjow asked.

"I need to speak with him. This is urgent," Ulquiorra said.

"You could try his workroom," Nel suggested.

Ulquiorra stormed into Urahara's workroom, and the latter was found slumped over his desk. "Urahara!" Ulquiorra shouted.

Urahara sat up with a start, a crease in his face from the papers he had fallen asleep on. He rubbed his eyes and looked at Ulquiorra. "Oh…hello," he said.

"Urahara, something is wrong," Ulquiorra expressed. "This morning when I awoke, Orihime began to appear differently. She smells and appears differently, almost like prey. I am concerned I have a desire to eat her."

Urahara's expression fell. He looked at the clock sitting on his desk, then looked back at Ulquiorra. He turned the clock around and gestured to the number. "You see that? I really hope that time is PM and not AM because if it was it would be too early for me to be dealing with arrancar sex ed."

Ulquiorra blinked. "What?"

Urahara leaned back in his chair and propped his feet up on the desk. "Arrancar don't _have_ hollow urges to eat, and your reiatsu hasn't changed much from what I can sense. I'm willing to bet that you're just seeing her instinctively as a woman now, which can be dangerous in its own way. But what I'm curious about is what made this sudden change."

"See her as a woman?" Ulquiorra asked. "I have always seen her as a woman. It is foolish to deny that fact."

"As a…uh…mate?" Urahara tried to think of an appropriate word. "You know breeding partner? You had to have at least heard of this in school if it wasn't applicable to arrancar."

_Mate…with…Orihime…?_ Ulquiorra's chest began to pound from the mere thought of it. He thought back to when Orihime was under his charge at Aizen's orders. Nnoitra had eluded to such a behavior, but Ulquiorra had brushed him off as being crude. He had never understood that desire to behave in such a way, as participating in pleasurable activities were meaningless to him. To suddenly develop this desire made him feel animalistic, no better than Nnoitra or Grimmjow. He was now…a _beast_. "This is how Grimmjow and the others feel?" Ulquiorra asked. "It feels like hunger."

"All men feel that way Ulquiorra. It's not exclusive to Hollows," Urahara stated. "You just took a while to catch up. Heh, maybe you're evolving."

"What do I do?" Ulquiorra asked.

"Nothing! Don't do anything," Urahara replied. "Well…nothing she doesn't want you to do I mean." He grinned mischievously.

Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed in contempt.

* * *

"Hey where's Komori? Isn't he usually with you?" Tatsuki asked Orihime at lunch.

Orihime smiled nervously. "Uhmmm well he said that he wasn't feeling good today! So he isn't coming. I uh…should go see if he's okay after school!" She managed to lie.

"I don't like that guy Orihime," Chizuru pouted. "He's been taking up way too much of you. He's practically glued to you. My Orihime deserves better than a boyfriend that clingy!"

"Speak for yourself!" Tatsuki yelled.

Orihime looked down at her lunch. Ulquiorra had been acting rather strange that morning. Maybe he…reacted poorly to her kissing him the night previous?

Orihime blushed and touched her face with her hand. It was only a tiny kiss on his cheek but…why did she do it? Did she feel overwhelmed by the emotions he was showing her? He was trying to say something to her. Maybe his vocabulary was so limited on feelings he just didn't know how to express himself correctly. Maybe he really _did_ care for her, but he didn't know the words to say so.

_"Care for" is a long way from in love_. In love? Why did that thought come to her mind? Is it because everyone thought they were dating? She didn't know Ulquiorra for nearly long enough…

Wait. She _had_ known him for longer than she realized. She had been pushing the thought of her capture at the hands of Aizen from her mind, but realized this was when a semblance of their relationship began. He was merely acting upon orders, but his curiosity got the better of him. He could be so innocent sometimes, and if Orihime had never seen him kill countless people in cold blood, she would have assumed he never could hurt anyone.

"Whoa…Orihime are you feeling okay? You're red as a tomato!" Chizuru gasped. "Do you need to see the nurse?"

Orihime looked up and smiled. "No I'm all right! Really! Just uh…tired I guess."

She wished she could talk to someone about her confused feelings. Orihime never had an older woman to guide her through life. She couldn't change the fact that her mother was never a significant figure in her life. The only women she knew were technically _dead_ , and soul reapers at that, and she didn't wish to trouble them with her teenage lovelife.

She didn't want to be a bother to Uryu, nor worry him that Ulquiorra was not there to protect her that day. So she decided to walk home herself. It was probably stupid, sure, but there hadn't been any arrancar attacks since that first encounter. Ulquiorra probably scared them pretty badly after that.

"Come to think of it, Ulquiorra always seems so self conscious about how scary he is," Orihime said to herself. Her heart began to ache for him. "He's really not scary at all. He looks kind of cute actually." She thought back to his released form, a black winged beast. It was a horrifying sight at first, a shock to her eyes, but he radiated such a sad loneliness Orihime couldn't help but _not_ be scared of him.

"People are going to think you're crazy by talking to yourself," Orihime blushed and slapped her cheeks. She had so many overwhelming emotions she just wanted to sit on the pavement and cry. Of course she couldn't do that, so she swallowed the lump in her throat and kept walking.

"Are you done? I didn't wanna interrupt your entertaining monologue."

Orihime spun around. There, suspended in the air above her, was an arrancar. He was a new face she didn't recognize, and appeared less human than the espada, so she assumed he probably was of lower rank. He landed on the ground and approached her. "Any last words?"

Orihime touched her hairpins. "S-santen Kesshun!"

A shield appeared in front of her. She hadn't battled in months, and her emotional state made her resolve waver. The arrancar shattered her shield with a slow, strong blow with his clawed right fist.

"Too bad it has to be this way," he said. "You're pretty cute."

Orihime had to go on the offensive if she was going to survive. "Tsubaki!" She called out. She aimed for his mask, but missed.

_You have to fight him!_ Orihime's mind was reeling. Ulquiorra had told her to stay with Uryu, and yet due to her desire to not inconvenience anyone, she had put herself in an even _more_ inconveniencing position!

"Stop moving around!" The arrancar yelled as he nearly missed hitting Orihime with a fatal blow.

His claws had scraped across her arm and chest, rendering her left arm useless. Her uniform was torn, and she began dripping blood onto the sidewalk. She was glad there were no ordinary humans walking on this at the hour, for they would be in a lot of danger.

She summoned her shield again to block another blow, but the arrancar broke it once again when he swung at her. Orihime was thrown several feet away, skidding her legs on the pavement. Her tights ripped from the impact, and the asphalt dug into her skin. _What do I do? What do I do? I'm going to die! I can't die on him I can't…_

"That's _enough_."

A familiar flash of white appeared before Orihime. Her heart that was beating in terror began to relax a bit.

Ulquiorra looked behind him and glared at Orihime. His expression was filled with an unusual amount of rage. "Foolish girl what were you _thinking_?! Do you not have a brain?!"

Orihime held her injured arm, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "I…I'm sorry…" she whimpered.

Ulquiorra turned his attention back at the arrancar. "I assume you harmed this girl."

"Oh boo-hoo look who it is, the human lover," the arrancar said. "Yeah I tried to kill her. And I _missed_."

The next motion was too fast for Orihime to see. Ulquiorra had drawn his blade and sliced the arrancar wordlessly in two. His right arm outstretched post swing and the massive splattering of blood were the only indications that this happened. The arrancar's corpse halves slammed onto the ground before promptly vaporizing towards the sky.

Ulquiorra flicked the blood from his blade and sheathed it. "Heal yourself," he commanded, turning towards her again.

Orihime did nothing and stared at the pool of blood gathering under her. Her vision was beginning to dim. How much blood had she lost? She wasn't in much pain, she mostly felt numb and like she wanted to sleep.

Ulquiorra rushed to her and reached out his hands as if to touch her, but hesitated to do so.

"Ulqui…orra…" Orihime said faintly, losing consciousness as she slumped over into his arms.


	10. Feelings

"I'm detecting spiritual pressure up ahead," said Renji.

Rukia and Renji, upon their discussions with Urahara, had reported back to Soul Society regarding not only Ichigo, but the arrancar threat on Orihime. It was concerning to Captain Yamamoto to hear rumors of Aizen supporters, but the head captain assured everyone that Aizen was safely imprisoned and no one could penetrate their defenses. Rukia and Renji were then sent back to monitor for danger. They were now standing on a rooftop near Urahara's shop, patrolling for any unusual signs of reiatsu.

Rukia's brow furrowed. "Ready yourself," she said, her hand on her zanpakto.

"Good thing Urahara upgraded these to detect garganta," Renji said, tapping the goggles he had on. A beeping noise erupted from it. "Here one comes!"

Just as he finished speaking, a crack formed in the sky and five arrancar spilled out of the black portal. The smallest was obviously their leader: a female with half her horned mask covering her forehead like a visor. She was tall and had long violet hair loose behind her. Her hollow hole was straight through her stomach. She grinned with a wicked expression. "Oh Soul Reapers! Good, I was looking to test out some of my new powers on somebody."

"And who the hell do you think you are?" Rukia asked. "I've been through Hueco Mundo and fought and defeated countless arrancar more fierce than you."

"Lilera Aiviche," replied the arrancar leader. "Nice to meecha, cardboard." She stuck out her tongue.

"What the hell is cardboard?" Renji growled protectively.

Lilera tapped her chest, which was clad with a revealing top, showing off her large breasts.

Rukia turned red. "OH GROW UP!" She shouted. She exhaled. _I can't let her taunt me. She has to be weaker than an Espada, but I won't underestimate her._

Renji, the less level headed of the two, rushed Lilera, his sword drawn. Lilera easily blocked him with her forearm and blew him backwards.

"Laaaame," she groaned. She motioned at the arrancar with her. "Kill them. If they get through you then I'll waste my time on them."

The arrancar behind her looked less human than she did, which Rukia assumed to mean they were of lower power level. She was shocked when she deflected one of their first blows. It was full of incredible power. They must have been formidable foes, but Rukia probably could have destroyed them with ease without the seal that had been placed on her body.

"Roar, Zabimaru!" Renji's shikai activated and injured one of the beastly arrancar. He screamed in pain and appeared enraged. It swung at Renji, who dodged it's attack easily, but took a hit from a second arrancar behind him. The wind was knocked from him, but be wasn't badly injured.

Rukia took a defensive stance, holding her sword in front of her. _I should end this quickly to avoid damage to the town._ "Dance, Sode no Shi-"

She froze. A familiar dark and powerful reiatsu appeared behind her. Lilera, who before was rather relaxed, stiffened her entire body. Rukia turned her head behind her, and her heart dropped to her stomach in fear and disbelief.

"I thought the consequences of appearing here again would have been obvious to you," said the owner of the powerful reiatsu. Rukia began to think of ways to escape and call Urahara for backup.

Ulquiorra glanced in Rukia's direction. "Judging by your fear, I assume Urahara has not informed you _which_ arrancar are under his jurisdiction."

Rukia swallowed. She thought the espada Ulquiorra had been killed by Ichigo! How the hell was he alive? _I don't know what the hell you're thinking Urahara but I'll just have to trust you._ "So you're here to help us?"

"I am not here to help soul reapers," Ulquiorra replied, drawing his sword. He pointed it towards Lilera. "But I have reasons of my own to keep these trash out of Karakura."

"Attack him!" Lilera yelled, as two of the arrancar lunged at Ulquiorra.

He sliced them across the chest and stomach with two quick blows, sending the arrancar slamming onto the rooftop. He looked disappointed and examined his blade. "I clearly am out of shape," he remarked, rolling his shoulders in an attempt to stretch them. "Normally they would have been cut clean in half."

Rukia and Renji watched this display in a bit of shock. "Damn…glad he's on our side now…" Renji muttered.

Ulquiorra vanished and appeared behind Lilera. Lilera drew her sword and blocked behind her just in the nick of time. She parried his blow and jumped backwards.

"Take out the remaining arrancar," Ulquiorra ordered.

Renji looked upset he was taking orders from an espada, but Rukia knew that this was the best option.

There was only one arrancar left to attack her and Renji. Rukia knew that it would be much easier to take this hollow on when they didn't have to worry about the others.

 _Wait a minute…_ Rukia thought. _Wasn't there four arrancar other than Lilera? Where'd the fourth one go?_ She managed to land a blow on the arrancar's arm, and it reeled back in pain.

She looked up at Ulquiorra, who was fighting Lilera on equal footing one-handed. Rukia had never seen Ulquiorra in combat, and had only intel and stories to go by. She knew he was extremely dangerous, but why did he fight so casually? Could it be that he didn't enjoy himself in battle? Didn't all hollows relish in conflict?

Rukia was about to go on the offensive after a few dodges when a flash of light pierced through the arrancar. It wasn't defeated, but it stumbled backwards to nurse its wound.

"It's quite the party up here," said the Quincy Uryu Ishida.

"I had him!" Rukia yelled.

Renji, who had suffered a wound, was on one knee. This wound was larger, and blood was spilling on the pavement. He looked up at Uryu and grinned. "Nice timing, Uryu. I wanna get this over quickly without having to-"

"Ishida!"

Ulquiorra aggressively pushed Lilera back and kicked her in the stomach, winding her. He then used a sonido and lunged at Uryu, grabbing him by the uniform.

 _"Where is Orihime?"_ He demanded in a dark voice.

Chills ran up Rukia's spine. _He may look like a person but…he is so much like a monster…_

"Would you put me down?!" Uryu cried. Once Ulquiorra obliged, Uryu straightened his uniform. "What do you mean 'where's Orihime'? Am I supposed to be stalking her or something?"

"She was supposed to stay with you today," Ulquiorra's voice still monotone, but it held extremely angry undertones.

"I think I saw her at school but we didn't talk today at all," Uryu said, looking confused. "I don't know what-"

Ulquiorra's face twisted into an expression of worry. Rukia backed up a step in surprise. _He can't actually be…worried about Orihime, is he?_

Lilera, recovered, used a sonido and attacked Ulquiorra from behind. He dodged, her sword slamming into the ground, knocking Rukia, Uryu, and Renji back.

Rukia stood to her feet and looked up at Ulquiorra. He had take his other hand out of his pocket and placed both hands on the handle of his sword. "I had intended to let you live within an inch of your life, but now you've put me in a bad mood." Ulquiorra lunged for Lilera, but just as his attack was going to connect, he suddenly stopped and looked panicked behind him.

"Damn it!" He cried. He used sonido and rushed off in another direction, leaving behind a very confused group of people.

* * *

"URAHARA!"

Kisuke, who had been monitoring the battle with the arrancar going on above him using some kind of monitor device, spun around to see Ulquiorra standing in the doorway, holding a bleeding and unconscious Orihime.

"Quickly! In here," Kisuke ordered. Ulquiorra obeyed and followed Kisuke into his workroom where he had a hospital bed. Ulquiorra laid Orihime down, his hands shaking.

Kisuke ripped off Orihime's sweater with a pair of scissors, and cut aside as much of her shirt as he could without sacrificing her modesty. She had large, ragged gashes across her chest, going from deep in her left shoulder to her left breast. The wound was slightly purple, which alarmed Kisuke. He grabbed a towel and pressed it against the wound to help stop the bleeding.

"Ururu!" Kisuke called.

The girl was just in the other room. She opened the door. "Yes?" She asked. She then turned pale at the sight of the injured Orihime. "I'll go get Tessai!" She exclaimed.

"His healing Kido is better than mine," Kisuke said, trying to start a conversation with Ulquiorra.

Ulquiorra was staring at Orihime's face. His face was already as pale as possible, but something in his eyes were glossed over in shock. His entire body was trembling.

"She'll be fine," Kisuke assured him.

"Fix her," Ulquiorra said in a small voice.

"We will," Kisuke said. Tessai entered the room as if on queue, and Kisuke left the job of healing Orihime to him while he dragged a shocked Ulquiorra out of the room.

Ulquiorra slumped onto the ground and tucked his knees to his chest. He stared at the floor and hugged his shins.

Kisuke sat cross-legged across from him. _This poor, poor creature…_ he thought, his heart full of pity. _Aizen…you monster…_

"I will have nothing if she dies," Ulquiorra said.

"Is she that important to you?" Kisuke asked.

"She is _everything_ to me," Ulquiorra replied. "It's…repulsive."

"That's just a normal part of being human, caring deeply about your loved ones," Kisuke said.

Ulquiorra's hand curled into a fist. "I am _not_ human."

"No, but you possess what makes people human," Kisuke said, pointing to the middle of his chest. "You got a heart even though you have a hole right where it should be. You should be proud, achieving something others cant."

"I did not achieve it," Ulquiorra responded. "It was given to me." He leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. "It was better in the darkness."

Kisuke sighed. "Would you believe me if I told you I know how you feel? Sometimes even humans don't belong among their own kind. Those of us who are considered weird or undesirable by society's standards are often cast out and abused. There are those of us who can react like Aizen did and shut off everyone from him and use people without remorse, or we can try to embrace the heart instead of casting it away." Kisuke felt a little awkward giving this kind of talk to another man, but Ulquiorra gave off an air that made him appear almost like a child.

"You have a point," Ulquiorra replied. "Aizen could never know her warmth…"

"You could try making more friends," Kisuke said.

"Orihime is more important than anyone else," Ulquiorra rejected fervently.

Kisuke laughed. "Humans can have lots of people they love. But you can love some people more than others. That's normal. Orihime is not going to feel less loved by you if you decide to be open to her friends. Quite the opposite in fact."

"Love? Is that what this is? It feels like pain," Ulquiorra clutched at his chest. "But I enjoy this pain…"

Kisuke couldn't help but laugh again. Despite this laugh, a weight from a dark secret lay heavy on his soul. _If only I had the guts to tell him…_

* * *

Orihime's eyes fluttered open. The last thing she remembered was being attacked by an arrancar on her way to her apartment. She was now in a strange room full of monitors, bottles, and papers. She was lying in a bed, and her left arm was bandaged in a sling. She had an IV in her other arm, and she felt woozy.

She felt something warm at the foot of her bed. Her vision began to clear, and she saw someone with dark hair hunched over he bedside, presumably asleep. Her heart skipped a beat as she realized it was Ulquiorra, who was not in his gigai.

She reached out her right hand and gently placed it in his hair. She held back a gasp. She had wanted to touch his hair for so long, and was surprised at how soft it was. It must have been the conditioner.

She stroked it with a loving care one would give a small animal. _He looks so peaceful asleep like this..._

Ulquiorra stirred. Orihime's reaction was delayed due to her injuries (and fever), so her hand was still on his head for a moment after he awoke. His large green eyes looked confused at the gesture.

"You're awake," he said as he grabbed Orihime's right hand and holding it with both his own. "That is…a relief."

"What happened?" Orihime asked.

"You were hurt by an Arrancar's attack, which was laced with some kind of poison," Ulquiorra explained. "You have been asleep for an entire day."

"I missed school!?" Orihime exclaimed.

"Yes, but I am sure missing only a few days of school will not matter for a student like you," Ulquiorra said.

*Is he…trying to make me feel better?* "But what about my friends and Ichigo…he must be so worried…" Orihime whimpered.

"Now that you are stable enough to be awake," Ulquiorra said, standing up and walking towards her bookbag. He unclipped her hairpins carefully, as if they were made of glass, and handed them to her. "Heal yourself…please." His voice wavered from the usual monotone with the last word.

"I can try," she replied as she took her hairpins. "Shiten Ko-"

"Don't you dare!" Came Urahara's voice.

Ulquiorra's body tensed and he snapped his head towards Urahara with a glare.

"My dear Mr. Arrancar please consider the consequences of Orihime exerting any type of energy," Urahara scolded, taking the hairpins from Orihime and sticking them back into her bag. "Her body is _mortal_ and _human_. Her and Chad's powers take a toll on their physical forms. The damage they take is relative to their bodies, not their Reiatsu levels. A blow that wouldn't normally kill, say, a soul reaper could easily end a human's life due to their fragile bodies. I mean, you understand don't you? You spend an awful lot of time in a gigai."

"I see," Ulquiorra said, relaxing his posture. His eyes moved towards Orihime. "You will rest and regain your energy," he commanded.

Orihime smiled. "Sure!" _Ulquiorra is so worried about me! I'm…so happy…_

"Does she have the strength to return home?" Ulquiorra asked. "And to attend school?"

"Yes, if she takes this antidote every day for a few weeks," Urahara replied, handing a medicine bottle to Ulquiorra. "I had to spend all last night analyzing that poison. Is poison common amongst arrancar?"

Ulquiorra placed the antidote in Orihime's bag. "Not unless they are in their ressurección," he replied. "Those arrancar's reiatsu was unusual and unlike anything I have encountered before."

"Interesting," Urahara said as he rubbed his chin. He then clapped hos hands together. "Welp! You're good to go Orihime. I've tucked some bandages in your bag but the wounds will close in a bit due to the kido, so don't worry too much about scarring. Just rest up and take care of yourself, okay? I get worried about you sometimes."

"Oh thank you Urahara!" Orihime gave him a warm smile. "Don't worry, I'll get better really soon! I have Ulquiorra to take good care of me."

Ulquiorra looked away from Orihime and shoved his hands in his pockets.

Ulquiorra carried Orihime home, but he went at a slower pace as to not overwhelm her weakened body. He let her down once they were in proximity of her apartment, as to not alarm anyone if they saw a girl randomly flying by in midair. Once inside, he led her immediately to her bedroom and made her sit down.

"Ulquiorra, I'm fine, really!" She assured him. She reached out her right hand to pat the top of his. "I'm going to be okay," she said as she stood up. "I'm hungry, do you want something?"

"Do not hurt yourself," Ulquiorra said as he followed her into the kitchen.

"Oh, ramen isn't that hard to make," Orihime said. She paused. "Ulquiorra, can you cook?"

"If I spent my entire life not eating before how can I possibly know how to cook?" He replied.

Orihime giggled. "Oh…silly me! Of course. But also! What if I'm not awake to make you anything? Oh no you must be hungry all the time! Here, why don't I show you how to at least make some ramen."

She reached for two packages of ramen, but was dissapointed when she realized she only had one hand to open them. She tried to use her teeth, but Ulquiorra took the packages from her and easily tore it open. She blushed and placed the ramen in two bowls with respective lids. She instructed Ulquiorra to pour a certain amount of the hot water on top of the ramen, and empty in the flavoring packets. After covering the lid, she set her kitchen timer for a few minutes.

"That was less complicated than I expected," Ulquiorra commented as he sat down with his bowl of ramen.

"Cooking is really easy once you get the hang of it," Orihime replied. She sighed when she realized she had to eat one-handed. She picked up her chopsticks and dug in, getting broth all over her face as she did so.

Once she was done, Ulquiorra wordlessly handed her a napkin.

Orihime blushed and wiped her face. "I can't believe you managed to eat so easily with one hand!"

"I am very skilled," Ulquiorra joked.

Orihime's heart jumped. _Did he…just smile?!_

Sure enough the _faintest_ smile had curled on the corners of his lips as he had last spoken, but had disappeared as quickly as it had come.

There was a bit of silence as Ulquiorra cleared their dishes and placed them in the sink. He then picked up a pink and yellow sponge Orihime kept next to the sink and asked "is this what you use to clean the dishes?"

"Yes but you don't have to-" Orihime began to reject.

"You will focus on regaining your energy," Ulquiorra said sternly as he began washing the dishes. It took him only a few minutes before he returned to the living room. "And after you have regained your energy, you will train."

"Train? My powers?" Orihime asked.

Ulquiorra's brows furrowed and he kneeled down next to Orihime, who was still seated at her table. "You nearly died. You are not nearly as strong as you could be. Your heart and will may be strong but your powers are weak. I do not make empty promises like Kurosaki." He clenched the fist that he had lying on the table. "It is unrealistic to expect me to be at your side at all hours of the day. In those instances I am not there, you _have_ to be able to protect yourself."

Orihime looked into his green eyes. They were full of sadness and worry, a deep concern for her safety. Normally she strengthened her powers out of a desire to help her friends, but Ulquiorra's pleading made her reflect on something. She didn't ever wish to use her powers for her own sake. It just felt _wrong_ somehow to help herself, for some reason.

"If you died," Ulquiorra said quietly. "I would have nothing."

 _Wait a minute…_ Orihime thought. _I thought he didn't care if I died? No…he said something about…his decision to disobey Aizen had nothing to do with my death. Did…did I misinterpret what he said this entire time?_

"So you really do care?" Orihime said, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

"I…" Ulquiorra appeared to struggle for words. "…I do."

Orihime couldn't keep her tears in any longer. She began sobbing as she leaned her head on Ulquiorra's shoulder. The arrancar was a bit startled, but he awkwardly placed a hand on the top of her head. He stroked her hair gently, entangling his fingers in her silky burnt orange strands. "I'm so glad!" She said, her heart overwhelmed. "I was so scared that you…didn't. And that you only wanted to protect me because Urahara told you to."

Ulquiorra's other arm wrapped around Orihime in a slightly awkward embrace. Orihime's heartbeat quickened as he did so. She sniffled and raised her right hand cautiously to touch his chest on the left side where his heart should be.

"Urahara did not order me to protect you," Ulquiorra said quietly. "I wanted to."

Orihime took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She had so many people in her life that wanted to take care of her. She was so grateful to them for their sacrifices. But, Ulquiorra was right. She was unable to take care of herself, and worried them. She was a burden on them, and she didn't want to be that way. She thought back to Ulquiorra's unusual amount of pain and worry, and the fact he had not left her side the entire time she was asleep at Urahara's. He cared...so much about her. She began crying again at the thought that she didn't believe him.

"C-calm down," Ulquiorra said. He moved Orihime away from him. She sniffed again, but yelped when he picked her up bridal style. He brought her to her bed again and handed her a box of tissues.

"Do humans always cry this much?" Ulquiorra asked. "I'm concerned you are going to become dehydrated."

Orihime hiccupped and laughed. "I guess I'm just super emotional today! Getting attacked and injured probably made me super tired."

Ulquiorra suddenly leaned over and kissed Orihime on the cheek.

Orihime was frozen in shock.

"Good night," Ulquiorra said, leaving her room.

Orihime fell backwards onto her bed and stared at the ceiling. She touched her cheek with her hand, feeling the warmth from where he had kissed her. She was just kissed by…Ulquiorra? This felt so wrong! Did he know what he just did? No…he must have known…he never acted without knowing what he was doing. Orihime buried her face in her pillow and kicked her legs, unable to contain her emotions.

 _I can't like him, I can't!_ She tried to not squeal into her pillow. She tried to divert her thoughts to Ichigo, to his tall body, his handsome face, and his determined brown eyes. The way he protected her from-

Ulquiorra jumping in front of her to prevent her from being attacked invaded her mind. Every time she tried to think of Ichigo, a stronger image of Ulquiorra appeared. She whimpered and clutched her pillow tightly.

 _If I…with Ulquiorra…_ she thought, her emotions in deep confusion. _Then I would…be betraying Ichigo…right?_

* * *

"Good morning, please take your medicine," Ulquiorra insisted the moment Orihime woke up. He didn't want her to die by the negligence that could have been prevented by her taking it.

He handed her a glass of water and one of the pills Urahara had given them. She rubbed her eyes and took the pill groggily. She then wandered to the bathroom and began to brush her teeth, but got toothpaste all over the sink due to using only one arm.

"Here," Ulquiorra said, placing toothpaste on it for her. He already was dressed and ready for school in his gigai, but he always did that way earlier than necessary. "If you hurry we have time to go and get breakfast."

Orihime responded with a "mhm!" due to her mouth full of toothpaste.

"Oh, my bandages!" Orihime exclaimed. Indeed, they needed to be changed.

"Let me help you," Ulquiorra insisted.

Orihime kneeled down on the floor of her room and began unbuttoning her purple pajamas covered in kitty faces. She blushed. "D-don't look…" she stammered.

"Oh…" Ulquiorra gulped. He realized that in order to change her bandage she would have to be shirtless. "I have to look at the injury…but you can hold your shirt up to preserve your modesty."

Normally Ulquiorra wouldn't have cared. But now, something made him incredibly fearful and nervous. _Is this what Urahara meant by seeing her as a woman?_

He had to take a deep breath to steady himself enough to not shake too much when changing the bandage. Her skin was smooth and appeared soft to the touch. His eyes trailed to her right hand which clutched her pajama shirt to her chest, covering her sizable breasts. He swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to focus his attention to her injury. Her wounds definitely were looking much better as Urahara had said they would. He carefully bandaged her back up with the clean ones Urahara had provided. "Put your sling back on after you have changed into your uniform," he instructed. He left her room and went outside to cool off. His body temperature was rising to concerning levels.

Orihime soon was ready for the day, but Ulquiorra had to attach her hairpins in for her, because she could only do them crookedly. He took her hand in his and walked with her to the bakery nearby.

The middle aged baker woman beamed when she saw her regular customers. "Hello! What can I get you two this morning?"

Ulquiorra was about to respond, when he noticed Orihime had become distracted. She pointed to a flyer that was posted on a corkboard on the wall above the various coffee mix-ins. "You're looking for employees?"

The baker nodded. "Oh yes. Are you looking for a job?"

Orihime nodded. "Yes my Aunt wants me to get one for after school shifts."

Ulquiorra was puzzled. He didn't really know Orihime's financial situation, nor did he know about this Aunt of hers.

"Well come by this weekend and we can work something out," the baker replied. She frowned. "Although…I don't want you to get hurt. What happened? Did you fall down the stairs again?"

 _Again?_ Ulquiorra gave a worried glance towards Orihime.

Orihime laughed nervously. "No this time I got uh…hit by a bike on my way home!"

"Oh honey you should be more careful!" The baker exclaimed. She pointed a finger at Ulquiorra. "You need to take better care of your girlfriend! Who knows what will happen next to poor Orihime."

Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed slightly, but other than that his expression still was as stoic as ever. "My mistake. Next time I will do better."

They ordered breakfast and sat down to wait. Ulquiorra paced around the bakery and stared at the help wanted poster. He didn't want to keep pestering Urahara for money. He no longer worked for Urahara due to his job of protecting Orihime, and he had spent most of his funds on his clothing and needs. Perhaps he should also get a job here to keep watch over Orihime without the "stalking" behavior, or letting his immense arrancar reiatsu bother the weaker humans around him.

They walked to school, coffee in hand. Ulquiorra had let go of Orihime's hand to allow her to hold her coffee, much to his disappointment. He voiced his desire to also be employed, and Orihime looked excited.

"Oh yes! I think it would be fun to work with you," Orihime beamed. "Although…you can't cook at all, so maybe you'd be in charge of stocking or moving heavy stuff. Actually I think she could use a strong guy to work for her! I think her son moved away to school so…" She rambled on about the bakery owner's personal life.

Ulquiorra couldn't help but have the smallest of smiles when looking at the girl walking next to him. When he looked at her, he saw something precious, like an irreplaceable treasure. There was nowhere he would rather be than be by her side. He would do everything in his power to protect her life, even if it meant the end of his own.


	11. Kiss

Halibel's legs gave way from exhaustion. Her bloodied drawn sword was in her hand, and sweat dripped down her forehead.

 _How can there be so many this strong?_ She thought in alarm. _They looked like arrancar made from lower hollows. Not even a Vasto Lordes has the power to stand up to me._

She propped herself up and stood to her feet. The perimeter of at least the third palace of Las Noches was safe. Her and the arrancar loyal to her had been pushed back by a resistance army, all with loyalty to Aizen.

 _As if I would ever return to that traitorous man_ , Halibel cursed Aizen and slammed her fist into the wall. _Damn! Why are these creatures blinded to the truth?_

Grimmjow and Nel had been a huge help clearing the third palace of rebel arrancar. There had been smaller attacks that Halibel had been able to take care of, but this last one was more difficult than the rest. These hollows seemed different somehow; stronger and with a strange reiatsu.

" _If you don't join us, we'll have to do something about it."_

"I hate to ask the Soul Reapers for help," Halibel sighed. "But this situation has gotten far worse than I feared."

* * *

"Well I'm glad the Soul Society could spare officer level Soul Reapers to assist me, but I never imagined they'd send a captain."

Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya was standing in the middle of Urahara's shop. He and his lieutenant Rangiku Matsumoto had been assigned to the World of the Living to assist Rukia, Renji, and Kisuke with the arrancar threat.

"Arrancar with poison that corrodes the soul is _definitely_ a captain-level threat," Toshiro replied to Urahara. He exhaled. The Soul Society had barely begun to mend itself after Aizen's defeat. Why now, of all times, must they be interrupted by an annoyance? Toshiro was not personally keen on this project of Urahara's, but he did have some understanding of where he was coming from. When crossing blades with the espada Halibel, he had realized that the arrancar were able to feel as much as they were. He had witnessed Aizen cut his own people down, and knew that these arrancar had been used and thrown away.

"I know it must irk you to have to defend former espada," Urahara said, as if reading Toshiro's mind. "But they really were just victims in all this. They're pretty powerful allies, as you can imagine."

"I assume their power levels are controlled?" Toshiro said. "A low number espada's sword release could destroy the entire town! Don't you have numbers three _and_ four under you?"

"Nel's the _former_ third, but yes," Urahara said. "But don't worry. Both of their reiatsu is currently unstable, and neither can use their resurreccion at this time. Grimmjow's the only one still capable, but his personality is such where he wouldn't waste it on such low level enemies."

"You have too much faith in these hollows," Toshiro exhaled.

"Well the Soul Society seems to have faith in just letting me be here unchecked don't they?" Urahara pointed out.

Toshiro had no comeback for that.

"You seem to have a full house here," Rangiku pouted as she looked over all the items on the store shelves. "Where are me and the captain going to stay?"

"We will find a-" Toshiro was interrupted.

"Oh I know! Orihime! She's such a sweet girl she totally will let us stay with her again!"

Toshiro sighed. "You certainly have no sense of-"

"Well…there _is_ somebody you're going to have to ask about that…" Urahara said cryptically. He grinned mischievously. "But never you mind I'm sure it'll be fine."

* * *

"Jeez Orihime are you okay?" Ichigo asked when she had arrived at school. They were early, and were gathered outside the front of it. She smiled awkwardly and rubbed the back of her neck.

"I-I'm fine!" She insisted. Ichigo was making her heart beat faster than it usually did, now that she was nervous and awkward about her budding unwanted attraction to Ulquiorra. "I was just…uhm…"

"A bike ran into her," Ulquiorra explained. "It was on her walk home from school the other day."

"Yeah! That." _Gosh he remembers my made up stories better than me! Was that what I said at the bakery this morning?_

Tatsuki crossed her arms. "Orihime, you gotta be more careful! You're always doing this crazy dangerous stuff! And here you are hurt like that!" She suddenly grabbed Ulquiorra by the collar. "I can't believe you let her get hurt by something so stupid! Aren't you always walking her home?!"

"Yeah! That's right!" Ichigo chimed in. He glared at Ulquiorra. "You're bein' a pretty crappy boyfriend lettin' her get hurt like that."

"N-now hold on-" Orihime started to say.

Ulquiorra grabbed Tatsuki's wrist. Orihime wasn't sure how strong he was in the Komori gigai, but based on Tatsuki's pained and shocked expression, she gathered he had a good amount of physical strength. "Attempt to harm me and I'll-"

Ulquiorra stopped mid sentence and appeared to rethink harming Tatsuki. Orihime was about to scold him, but she waited for him to finish.

He let go of Tatsuki's wrist as he stepped back from her. "If you are so concerned about her safety, then why are you not there for her? And you, Kurosaki-do you know anything about her at all?"

Ulquiorra stood defensively in front of Orihime.

"You shut up," Ichigo snarled. "Who the hell do you think you are? You just met her and haven't gone through half the crap we have with her!"

Ulquiorra's expression did not change. "You undervalue her worth and dote on her like she's an idiot. You underestimate her strength and believe she is easy to predict or manipulate. Has it ever occurred to you that she spends time with me because she _chooses_ to?"

Orihime didn't know what to do. Ulquiorra was right, but Tatsuki and Ichigo were acting out of concern. She really hated that Ulquiorra and her friends couldn't just get along, but based on their history that…probably was wishful thinking.

"Orihime's just too nice to tell you she's scared of you!" Ichigo replied. "I can tell she's totally uncomfortable!"

Ulquiorra froze, as if he had been cut by an invisible knife.

Orihime knew exactly why. Ulquiorra's feelings had been hurt! Other people wouldn't understand, but she knew he could be extremely sensitive to some opinions of others. She jumped forwards and put her good arm out in front of Ulquiorra, as if to shield him from her friends. "Guys that…that wasn't nice at all!" She swallowed her nervousness in confronting two of her best friends. "I…I'm not scared of him. He's not scary at all." She looked back at Ulquiorra and gave him the warmest smile she could manage.

Ichigo and Tatsuki took a couple of steps back. Orihime felt tears forming in her eyes. She didn't want to cry in front of them, but this whole situation felt horrible. She wished so much she could tell Ichigo and Tatsuki who Komori really was, but she knew that it would make them worry even more. Ichigo probably would have tried to kill him! Or worse…would Ulquiorra hurt Ichigo? He wouldn't do that, right? Not if she asked him to…right?

"Just…stop," Orihime continued, the tears spilling over. "All he wants are friends." Her voice got very small.

"Oh…gosh Orihime I'm sorry," Tatsuki apologized. She rubbed the back of her neck and looked at Ulquiorra with a small blush on her cheeks. "I'm sorry too I just get a bit overprotective when Orihime's hurt."

Ichigo was still glaring at Ulquiorra, so Tatsuki kicked him in the shin. "Apologize you idiot! Can't you see we hurt Orihime's feelings!?"

Ichigo sighed. "Yeah okay. Fine. Whatever. I'm sorry I guess," he muttered as he walked inside the school.

"You know what I'm glad you have a boyfriend who isn't that idiot," Tatsuki remarked.

Orihime wiped her tears away with her good hand. "He's not my boyfriend Tatsuki…" she corrected her as they walked inside for class.

"Apparently not," Ulquiorra added. He shoved his hands in his pockets. "I am…sorry about your wrist." He apologized quietly to Tatsuki.

Tatsuki looked a little startled, but she smiled. "Nah it's okay! I was the one who was gonna punch ya anyways."

Ulquiorra's expression showed a decent amount of surprise.

Orihime could barely focus on school that day. The conflict she endured between her friends sat at the pit of her stomach. She kept glancing over at Uryu, who was the only other person who was in on her secret for telepathic support, but he was focused on studying as per usual. When lunch time finally came, she suggested to Ulquiorra that they sit with her girl friends, which he complied but did not appear enthused.

The other girls looked shocked when the legendary Komori sat down with them on the school's rooftop. He stayed a distance away, sitting closest to only Orihime, where he quietly ate his own lunch.

Several of the girls were blushing and giggling, staring at Komori. One of them said to Orihime, "so is it true you two are dating?"

 _How many people are going to ask this_? Orihime thought, exasperated. "We're just friends!" She insisted.

The girls looked at each other, but then blushed in excitement. "So...so Komori…you're single?"

Ulquiorra swallowed the bite he was eating. "I have no interest in dating girls," he said.

The girls looked shocked, talked amongst themselves, then one of them spoke. "So like…you're…you're into boys?! That makes so much sense! Oh! You both must crush on Ichigo! That's why you hang out all the time."

Orihime had never seen such an odd, uncomfortable expression cross Ulquiorra's face before.

"N-no you got it all wrong," Orihime said, waving her hand nervously. "Ul-uhm, Komori just isn't ready for dating. He uhm…just had a nasty breakup. A real terrible betrayal. You know the kind that makes you rethink your life and who your friends are."

"You…you're…interesting," Ulquiorra muttered.

Orihime exhaled.

"Well that's good! I was worried my poor little Orihime was dating some nasty guy!" Chizuru said, clutching her chest dramatically.

The rest of the girls looked relieved that Komori was still single.

Orihime quietly sat and ate her lunch. She usually had no problem getting along with her friends at school, but "Komori" had driven a serious wedge between her and the other girls. She normally could ignore it, but it was getting harder and harder to do so. She knew the other girls were jealous of her being with Komori all of the time, she just chose to ignore it and smile.

 _This time, ignoring it isn't helping…_ she thought during class again. They had a quiz that day that she surely flunked, which dampered her spirits even more than the usual. When the day was finally done, she wished she could just crawl under a blanket forever and never come out. That actually sounded pretty nice. Maybe with a cup of tea and a movie, too.

"Are you all right?" Ulquiorra asked her.

 _I wish I could be as cold as him sometimes,_ she thought. _Then I wouldn't have to feel so sad…_

"Don't reply then," Ulquiorra said, his hands stuck in his pockets and his eyes turned towards the clouds in the sky.

Orihime blushed. "I'm sorry. I'm fine."

"All right, but don't strain yourself," Ulquiorra scolded. "The poison still is in your bloodstream and could cause you damage."

"Right," Orihime replied. They walked for a bit, until she asked, "Ulquiorra? Why are you taking care of me?"

"Because I want to," Ulquiorra replied.

"Yes but…you give me so much attention and do everything I ask," Orihime said. "It's way more than just keeping me safe from arrancar."

Ulquiorra was quiet, as if pondering is he should say his next words. She realized why after he spoke them. "If I serve you, then I perhaps may be permitted to stay in your presence."

Orihime tried to process his words. Permitted to stay with her? _Oh…_ She realized the only semblance of a relationship Ulquiorra had ever had was his servitude to Aizen. He was loyal to a fault, so surely Aizen's defeat must have crushed him. "Ulquiorra, I'm not Aizen. You don't have to be my servant in order for me to want to spend time with you. We're friends! Friends are different. We do things for each other because we care about each other! You can rely on me to help you too."

Ulquiorra's cheeks turned red, his green eyes gazing dreamily at her. He was so adorable, and appeared so human in Komori's gigai. His soft, messy black hair framed his face nearly perfectly. He looked so sad and helpless, like a lost puppy. Orihime felt her cheeks warm. _No, no, no! Orihime you can't!_

She broke the moment and looked away. She felt him grab her hand, to which she couldn't help but smile.

They returned home, Orihime still in a sad mood over the day's events. She announced she was going to make tea, but got distracted by the thought of making cookies, which surely would do the trick in cheering her up.

"What is that?" Ulquiorra asked, looking curiously into the kitchen.

"Oh, I'm baking cookies!" Orihime replied. "They're chocolate chip! It was kinda hard with one arm but I did it! They're baking right now!"

The kitchen was an absolute disaster.

Ulquiorra gave her an incredulous look and grabbed a broom, sweeping the dustings of flour and sugar off the floor. Orihime blushed and tried to stop him.

"Honestly," Ulquiorra scolded her, gently pushing her aside.

"You cant clean up this mess by yourself," Orihime insisted. "You were at school all day and did your homework you must be exhausted."

"Are humans that fragile that they become exhausted from sitting in a desk all day?" Ulquiorra asked in genuine wonder. "I barely exerted any spiritual energy at all today. You," he gently guided Orihime to the living room by holding her shoulders. "Will stay out here and _rest_."

Orihime felt restless letting Ulquiorra clean the mess she made. She pulled one of her favorite blankets, a fluffy warm one with donut print on it, over her head and curled up in a little ball. She heard the time go off in the kitchen, and she rushed back in to remove the cookies. Upon entering she saw that Ulquiorra had somehow cleaned the kitchen in under ten minutes.

"How did you do that?" Orihime gasped.

"I am incredibly efficient," Ulquiorra replied.

Orihime removed the cookies, which were perfectly done. "Yay! Now to wait for them to cool!"

Ulquiorra was eyeing the cookies expectantly.

"You cant have one yet," Orihime said, this time being the one pushing him from the kitchen. "I'm going to make tea for reals now, and then we can watch a movie!"

"I've never seen one," Ulquiorra commented when he helped Orihime bring out mugs of tea and a plate of cookies.

"A movie?" She asked. "Oh. Yeah. They probably don't have those in Hueco Mundo, huh?" She looked over the collection of movies she owned, trying to decide which one she wanted to watch. She settled on a soft, cute animation featuring magical creatures who live in a forest. Obviously a movie for children, but this type of thing is what she needed at the moment.

Ulquiorra was curious about her movie collection. He knelt down in front of her shelf full of movies and took some of them out to look at them. "Why are some of them shaped like boxes and the others are…" He opened a case and spun the disc inside with a finger.

"Oh that's a VHS and that's a DVD!" Orihime explained. "They're uhm…different methods of holding the movie. You gotta put them in the right movie player though. Here, like this," she said, taking out the DVD she wanted to watch and placing it in her DVD player.

Ulquiorra stared at the tv screen which lit up.

"Don't sit too close," she said, patting next to her. Ulquiorra obeyed and took a seat next to her, his eyes still glued on the glowing screen.

Orihime snuggled up in her blanket and nibbled on a cookie. Ulquiorra was sitting rigidly, as if he was incredibly focused on what he was observing. After a while, he spoke. "Humans create imagery to fool the eyes into believing false things," Ulquiorra said."Interesting."

"Well that's…one way to put it," Orihime said with an unsure grin.

"I had an incorrect assumption about seeing before," he said. "That I only believed in things that I saw with my own eyes. Yet, here on this movie I am seeing things that are not real and I do not believe in. There are things that exist even without my eyes seeing them."

Orihime didn't have the heart to tell Ulquiorra that it's not appropriate to talk during a movie. Instead she decided to teach him that human custom later (she had seen this movie at least twenty times) and simply turned down the volume. "What sort of things?"

"The heart, for one matter," Ulquiorra replied, hovering his hand over Orihime's chest. Unlike the time he was holding her hostage in Hueco Mundo, this time it was more of a gesture of understanding. There was no confusion in his eyes. His fingers brushed against her collarbone and trailed a few inches down her chest.

Orihime shuddered, but she did nothing to stop him. She trusted him, as odd as that sounded. Her eyes trailed down from where they were locked on his eyes to the hole in the middle of his chest. She had become accustomed to seeing him outside of the gigai the moment they returned home, and his monster-esque appearance felt almost comforting. His hand was resting on hers where his hollow hole was. He would tear people's hearts out in an attempt to try to make them understand him, to somehow make companions. But now he understood what it really took to find a companion. She found herself touching the edge of his hollow hole with gentle fingers, as if to mirror his current gesture against her pink tshirt.

A sound escaped the back of Ulquiorra's throat. He was surprised at Orihime's touch, but he did not seem to reject it. "I wish I could do something about it," Orihime whispered, not really to Ulquiorra but to herself.

Ulquiorra brought his other hand up to caress the side of her cheek, rubbing it softly with his thumb. "You have done everything," he whispered, his face slowing inching closer to hers.

Orihime closed her eyes. She let the kiss happen, overwhelmed by her feelings inside her. He had gently pressed his lips on hers, awkward and unsure of how to proceed with the gesture. She couldn't help but to kiss him back in the heat of the moment. She leaned her body closer to his, not willing to let her rational mind overtake her.

_Knock knock knock!_

A loud knocking on the front door made Orihime jump to her sense and pull away from Ulquiorra. Both she and Ulquiorra had a look of surprise at each other, and their cheeks were flushed pink.

"I guess she's not home," came a familiar voice. "That's worrysome…"

Ulquiorra flew open the door before Orihime could react. She couldn't see who it was, but she could sense the tension in the air.

"What did you do with Orihime?" Came a male voice.

Orihime rushed over and peeked out from behind Ulquiorra's shoulder. She saw Toshiro and Rangiku in gigai standing at her door. Her heart jumped in excitement. "Oh! Hello!" She smiled.

Toshiro and Rangiku glanced at each other, then back at Orihime.

"Come in!" Orihime insisted, pushing Ulquiorra aside. The arrancar complied, but his sharp eyes watched the two Soul Reapers enter with an air of mistrust.

"What can I help you with?" Orihime asked.

"We were just wondering if we could stay with you," Rangiku explained. "You know, because we were assigned here to protect Karakura Town from the arrancar invasions."

"Yes, and you as well," Toshiro added, quickly glancing at Ulquiorra.

"Orihime already has someone to protect her," Ulquiorra said coldly.

"Does she?" Toshiro snapped.

"Ulquiorra has done such a good job!" Orihime said, trying to diffuse the tension.

The two soul reapers looked at her.

"I…normally would say yes but…" Orihime looked at Ulquiorra with a pained expression. "Ulquiorra already is staying here."

"You're letting an espada stay in your house?" Toshiro asked in disbelief.

"I am here to-"

"Why don't you two boys go outside to cool off and finish your discussion?" Rangiku said with a scary voice. Toshiro and Ulquiorra obeyed and rushed out the front door.

Orihime wanted to call out to Ulquiorra not to do anything rash. _You have to trust him…_ she thought.

"The captain won't hurt him," Rangiku assured Orihime. "He won't attack him unless provoked." She sat down and motioned for Orihime to sit next to her. "What's going on? Wasn't he the espada who captured you?"

Orihime wrapped her blanket around her tighter, since she still had it draped over her shoulders. "He's my friend now," she managed to say. "He's…not as bad as people think he is! He deserves a second chance and I really mean it!"

Rangiku looked concerned, but she put a reassuring arm around Orihime anyways. "All right, I trust you. Is he staying here with you? Urahara didn't force this on you did he?"

"Oh! Oh no," Orihime replied. "Ulqui wanted to protect me so I let him. Besides it's been fun having someone here with me." She smiled, but then she suddenly remembered the kiss they had shared only a few minutes ago, and covered her reddening face with her blanket.

Rangiku chuckled. "Well, I'd hate to impose on you but-"

"Oh! You can totally stay here it's okay!" Orihime said. "You can share my room with me and Captain Hitsugaya can stay in the livingroom with Ulqui." She smiled, but then realized that might be a problem. "If…they can get along, that is. Ulqui isn't antagonistic really unless someone provokes him."

"There's probably going to be a lot of tension," Rangiku sighed. "But hopefully there won't be any actual fights breaking out. The captain really isn't too thrilled with this 'program' of Urahara's, you know."

Orihime offered Rangiku cookies because she couldn't think of anything to say about this incredibly weird situation.

* * *

"Grimmjow, if you break anything else I'm taking it out of your pay," Kisuke muttered as he ripped open a damaged box of candy the rest of the way and began eating it. "I'm gonna get fat from having to eat all this candy and its not good for Ururu either."

"Shut up," Grimmjow snarled, roughly dropping another box. "The only reason I'm here is because Hueco Mundo's become a shithole and I don't wanna deal with it anymore!"

"Right, okay," Kisuke replied, his mouth full. "I have questions for you about those arrancar that attacked here the other day."

"I'm still pissed about that!" Grimmjow snapped. "If I wasn't out doing your damn grocery shopping I coulda kicked all their asses no problem."

"You would have destroyed half the town doing it," Nel chimed in. "You have absolutely no restraint."

"Shut up," he grumbled.

Nel leaned over the counter and looked at Kisuke. "What is it you wanna ask about? My memory is a bit hazy from my time as an espada, but I might know something he doesn't."

"The arrancar seemed modified somehow," Kisuke explained. "They were strong, like an espada's fracciones, yet they appeared less human-like. And their attacks were laced with an incredibly corrosive poison that attacks the soul itself."

Nel's brow furrowed. "How horrible. That sounds like something Szayelaporro would have created."

"Yes, but Squad 12 basically raided his facility," Kisuke explained. "So these modifications must have happened after Aizen's defeat."

"He could have had a second lab," Nel said. "He was never the type to keep everything in one place."

Kisuke frowned. Why hadn't he thought of that before? Of course that made sense! Why would you hide your most valuable secrets in one place? He sighed.

"Well…the poison wasn't that complicated, so I was able to develop an antidote," Kisuke said. "I am concerned at who would be doing this. I originally thought that the arrancar were just looking for vengeance for Aizen, but this appears to be bigger and more complicated."

"That bastard Aizen can stay in that prison for all eternity for all I care," Grimmjow said.

"I agree," Nel replied. She hopped onto the counter and sat on it. "Has Ulquiorra had any progress with his sword? I haven't yet, but his case is a lot more complicated than mine."

Kisuke thought for a moment. "Not that I know of. That's something else I should look into, actually." He frowned. There was a lot of his plate. He had barely been sleeping, but he had his work cut out for him. There were several pieces that needed to be put into play, but this arrancar situation surely had been a recent, tremendous distraction.

_Why can't any of this just be simple and easy to fix?_


	12. Friends?

Lilera slammed her fist against the wall, shattering the stone and splitting open the skin of her hand. She grit her teeth and looked at her self-inflicted injury and waited for it to heal. Sometimes she wished she had traded in her regenerative capabilities for power. Maybe then Lord Aizen would have even considered her for a position amongst the Espada. She refused to serve as a fracciones, considering the position in servitude to be disgusting.

Now, here she was, crawling back to Hueco Mundo after being scared off by one of her many failures due to her lack of strength. "Dammit!" She yelled. She barely was able to keep up with a weakened Ulquiorra. He still had his regeneration as well! Why the hell was he so strong!? He is as strong as he is and he abandoned his fellow arrancar _and_ Lord Aizen for some human girl?!

"Don't break my wall you bitch!" Yelled Lilera's superior, Loly.

"The only reason you're ranked above me is because you were a personal assistant to Lord Aizen!" Lilera yelled. "I could wipe the floor with you!"

"I was way more beneficial to Aizen than you'd ever be!" Loly yelled back. "Learn your place! If you don't do as I say we'll never get Aizen back to us!"

Menoly, who was usually quiet, spoke up. "Hey we won't get Lord Aizen back if we keep fighting like this."

"She's right, you know."

Chills ran down Lilera's spine. A petite female arrancar, her mask covering both her eyes, and dressed in a mess of tattered white robes walked forwards. She had broken chains bruising her ankles and dragging behind her, and her dark green hair was matted and unkempt.

"I-I thought I told you never to come up here," Loly said with fear in her voice.

"I merely came to inform you that the newest batch has been completed," the arrancar said.

Lilera gulped and looked in Loly's direction.

"Oh? And how's their power looking?" Loly asked.

"The newest batch have reiatsu levels that could easily keep up with a lower ranked Espada," the arrancar replied. "We have yet to reach the Vasto Lordes phase, but it shall eventually be possible once enough time has elapsed."

Loly's face broke into a wicked grin. "Let's send some of these new ones to say hello to the precious Princess. And as for you!" Loly grabbed Lilera by the wrist and tossed her towards the ragged and chained arrancar. "Do something with her pathetic reiatsu, will you?"

Lilera tried to wrench herself free from the ragged arrancar, but she wasn't fast enough. Heavy chains curled around her wrists, binding her so tightly it began to hurt. "Damn you!" Lilera screamed. The arrancar began dragging her out of Loly's room, but she fell to her knees in despair. She gripped on the floor, trying to desperately prevent herself from meeting her horrendous fate. "Don't do this to me! I can serve Lord Aizen with my power!"

Loly ignored Lilera's pleas and turned the other way.

* * *

"We've been standing here for at least five minutes."

Ulquiorra glared at the soul reaper across from him. He and that shorter soul reaper boy had moved to the rooftop, staring down each other. He had evacuated his gigai, placing him on equal footing. Both had their hands in their pockets, watching for the other to draw their sword first.

"What do you want with the girl?" Ulquiorra finally spoke.

The soul reaper's brow furrowed. "I want nothing with the girl. Her powers are useful, but she is a human so any request of her would be in emergency situations only. But...I could ask you the same question, arrancar."

"You have no business knowing," Ulquiorra replied.

"Seeing as you were formerly a prisoner of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads," the soul reaper said. "I would say everything is my business."

"She is my friend," Ulquiorra stated. Using the word "friend" to refer to Orihime hurt him for some reason.

"With a hollow? Humans and hollows can't be friends," the soul reaper said. "It goes against nature."

"I am an arrancar," Ulquiorra corrected him. "I have no desire to hunt humans for prey." _Did I ever eat humans when I was a hollow? I wonder what kind of human life I had before I was a hollow. Did I know anyone like Orihime?_ The sudden nature of Ulquiorra's thought process gave him a bit of a migraine. He winced and held his forehead tenderly.

This seemed to relax the soul reaper a bit, for he approached Ulquiorra. "My name is Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya of squad 10. You must be Ulquiorra Cifer."

"Correct," Ulquiorra replied, removing his hand from his head as the migraine vanished the instant it came. _I've never had that happen before…_

Hitsugaya sighed. "Your reiatsu is immense, but it's unstable and not as threatening as I expected it to be. You seem safe enough, but that zanpakto bothers me."

"I have no obligation to get rid of this," Ulquiorra stated.

"Right, as the Head Captain himself gave Urahara jurisdiction over you," Hitsugaya said, displeased. "Well, I'm going back inside. No use getting into a fight over nothing." He gracefully glided down off the roof and entered his gigai.

Ulquiorra waited a few moments before going back inside. He took the opportunity to take a deep breath and stare at the crescent moon in the sky. It reminded him of Hueco Mundo, his home, yet the twinkling stars and lack of white sands made it feel so alien. _Maybe I can take Orihime back with me to Hueco Mundo forever,_ he thought. He sighed. _No. She belongs here. She hates it in that desolate place. I will learn to exist in this world she holds dear._

"Oh, good you're back," the blonde taller soul reaper said as Ulquiorra entered the apartment. "We we just going over sleeping arrangements. I'll be in Orihime's room with her and you two boys can sleep out here."

Hitsugaya looked annoyed. "Don't call me 'boy', Rangiku. Show some respect."

Rangiku laughed. Ulquiorra took a good look at her. She probably was considered beautiful by human standards. She wore clothing that showed off more of her body than Orihime ever did, and Ulquiorra found that to be a bit crude. Upon looking at her, he realized he didn't feel the same as he did when looking at Orihime. What was so special about Orihime? Did his primal instincts only awaken with her?

"Your arrancar friend is staring at my boobs," Rangiku whined, tugging at her shirt collar.

Orihime blushed and looked a bit dissapointed.

Hitsugaya clenched his fist. "Well, why don't you try wearing something less revealing for once!?"

"Hey now it's not my fault things don't fit me!" Rangiku said. "Seriously I-"

"Are you done?" Ulquiorra said. "We have school tomorrow and Orihime needs her sleep."

"Help me get the bedding for them," Orihime said to Ulquiorra.

He obeyed, and while he was reaching for stuff for her, she said quietly, "this doesn't change anything."

"Change what?" Ulquiorra asked for clarification. Humans spoke so cryptically sometimes. It was annoying.

"How I…" Orihime seemed to search for words. "Them staying here won't make me like you any less."

 _Oh. That's all._ "Of course not," he said. "Soul Reapers, despite being a hollow's natural enemy, are a human's ally. Any ally of yours I have no problem with." This was somewhat of a lie. He didn't like to admit it, but he was still harboring a grudge against Kurosaki.

"That's not what I…" Orihime didn't finish.

Ulquiorra was too overwhelmed by the events of that night to bother figuring out what she wanted to actually say. As soon as he helped Orihime with the sleeping arrangements (making sure Orihime was in her bed as well without her rushing around trying to make the complaining Rangiku comfortable), he escaped to the roof again where he could think.

He kissed her… _on the mouth._ Ulquiorra felt chills on his body, remembering the sensation. The way she had touched him was different. He could still feel her fingers on the edge of the hole that marked him as a monster. How could she approach something so horrifying? Let alone touch it?

He wanted to do it again. He was angry at the soul reapers for interrupting them. He wanted to see what would have happened had they not been stopped. Yet, he didn't want to impose his monstrous form on Orihime again. She was an idiot for even coming near him. The gigai at least made it possible for him to wrap his head around her acceptance. But she kissed him like that in his _arrancar form._

 _"We're friends" she always says. She does not kiss Ichigo or Tatsuki or even Uryu this way._ Ulquiorra was frustrated. She still called him the same as Ichigo, yet somehow in his limited knowledge he knew they were something different. At least, to him it felt different. _How do I know if I don't have any other friends?_

Perhaps it wasn't such a bad idea after all to make more friends. If he made more friends, then he would be able to figure out if what he felt with Orihime was different at all. He could start by befriending her friends. He wasn't sure how to do it, so perhaps he could ask Orihime in the morning.

* * *

_"You better have a damn good reason for daring to contact me."_

_Kisuke stared at the monitor in front of him. His former subordinate, now captain of squad 12, was glaring wildly at Kisuke, eccentric makeup and all._

_"I wanted some information that was stored there," Kisuke replied, unphased by Kurotsuchi's lack of respect._

_"I am incredibly busy! There's been so much dissecting I've had to do! And the entire Soul Society is in shambles thanks to that idiot Aizen," Kurotsuchi said. "It better be important!"_

_"I want the data that's saved on the criminal…Koga Kuchiki."_

Kisuke was pouring over the documents he had received from Squad 12 several months ago. Despite the looming threat of arrancar attacks, he felt comfortable enough to work on other projects now that Toshiro had been sent to help guard against them. The documents detailed the intricacies of the zanpakto, and a particular individual who possessed a rather unique one.

"Muramasa," Kisuke muttered as he read the zanpakto's name. This zanpakto had the ability to invade others internal worlds and even go as far as to control them. Koga was a major threat to the Soul Society, eventually being sealed in a location only the Head Captain Yamamoto knew about.

Oh and Kisuke, of course, but he never let _that_ one slip around the authorities.

Muramasa had a similar composition to that of one of Kisuke's own inventions, the tenshintai. The tenshintai allowed a soul reaper to manifest their zanpakto by force, allowing for a faster mastery of the second sword release, bankai. However, Kisuke was interested in the _opposing_ effect. Instead of bringing the zanpakto spirit _here,_ he had a desire to enter their domain and go to _them._ While this was possible for Kisuke to do with his own sword, Benihime, his desire was to visit the worlds of _others._

"The hell, it's so damn _late,_ " said Grimmjow, opening the door. "Do you ever _sleep?!_ "

Kisuke quickly started shoving the incredibly classified information into a pile and back into his secret drawer. "Oh! Hello Grimmjow! I thought you'd be asleep already."

Grimmjow rubbed the back of his neck and looked to the side. He didn't wear his gigai very much, and often expressed his extreme distaste of it. He wasn't wearing it now, and it was entertaining to Kisuke to see this former espada wearing a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants looking disheveled and tired. "Couldn't sleep."

"Is this a normal occurrence or are you just a night owl like me?" Kisuke asked, taking a sip from the mug of tea on his desk.

Grimmjow sat cross legged on the floor. "Tch. Don't give me that concerned crap."

"Your comrade Ulquiorra seems to be taking a liking to forming attachments," Kisuke prodded. He mentally prepared for Grimmjow to have some sort of violent outburst. He had (finally) learned and taken precaution, setting barriers and such in his workroom to prevent any more arrancar-induced damage.

Grimmjow did no such thing. Instead he had a flash of disappointment in his eyes. "He's just gonna get hurt, the idiot."

"Isn't experiencing pain a part of it all though?" Kisuke replied, waving his hand dramatically in the air. "Ulquiorra's had _quite_ the painful experience so far."

"What's the point in hanging around people weaker than you?" Grimmjow said. "Ulquiorra keeps being with that _Princesa_ of his. She's weak and she'll just go and die on him!"

Kisuke detected a twinge of pain in Grimmjow. "Oh? It sounds like you're familiar with this concept." _That's right. He's an espada. His fracciones were some of the first to die by the Soul Reaper officers at the beginning of the war. Oh…dear…_ Kisuke had a sudden realization that Toshiro was one of the Soul Reapers responsible for killing one of Grimmjow's companions. Oh well, he'd deal with _that_ mess later.

Grimmjow crossed his arms.

"Well you seem to be getting pretty close to Nel, aren't you?" Kisuke continued. Honestly these arrancar's love lives were more entertaining than a tv drama to him and he was _here_ for it.

"That's stupid! I just wanna fight her," Grimmjow snapped. "See how strong she _really_ is. But if you mess up somethin' she won't get strong again and I won't be able to fight her!" His face was red, his emotions readable, and his words were obviously meant to convince himself.

"Well if you don't behave that will be an issue," Kisuke said with a grin. "Now unless you want to watch me read these boring papers I suggest you try to get some sleep. Want some tea? Its a blend that helps calm you down.

Grimmjow reluctantly accepted.

* * *

Orihime woke up earlier than usual and slid out of bed. Her arm hardly hurt anymore, and she was amazed to realize her wounds were basically healed! She removed her own bandages and stretched her arm carefully. It was a little tender, but it would be okay.

She stood up, but felt a little dizzy. She wasn't sure why, then thought that maybe it had something to do with the pills Ulquiorra forced her to take. She looked over and saw Rangiku fast asleep, her shirt pulled up and her hair an absolute wreck. Orihime giggled and grabbed her spare school uniform she had to wear since her previous one was destroyed by the arrancar attack.

She was low on funds. Her Aunt gave her enough to pay the rent and other essentials, provided Orihime keep her grades up. The last flunked quiz and her missing days of school worried her. Orihime hated asking for help and troubling people, so getting a job would at least give her some level of financial security. She still would need her Aunt's help, but at least she wouldn't have to beg for extra.

Ulquiorra and Toshiro were already awake. Ulquiorra was dressed and in the Komori gigai as usual, and Toshiro was dressed and watching him like a hawk. Ulquiorra was reading manga, appearing unaffected by Toshiro's glaring.

"Good morning Orihime," Ulquiorra said the moment she walked out of her room. "You're up earlier than usual."

Toshiro glanced between Ulquiorra and Orihime, like he was trying to piece this situation together.

"Oh, morning Ulqui! Oh and Toshiro too!" Orihime said with a nervous smile.

"That's captain Hi-" Toshiro sighed. "Never mind."

"Oh uhm, Ulqui," Orihime said. "My wounds have healed. I'll be fine so-"

"Take your medicine," Ulquiorra ordered. "The bottle is in the bathroom on the shelf where you keep the human medicines and bandages."

Orihime obeyed, but felt like his tone was rather cold. Was it Toshiro that was making him nervous?

She changed in the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and did her hair. She almost forgot to take her medicine, but soon after she did she felt a lot less sick.

"Medicine taken!" Orihime announced after she emerged from the bathroom. Ulquiorra's eyes looked her over, but they were unusually hard to read. _What's with him this morning?_

"Good thing we grocery shopped extra!" Orihime said. "Toshiro, are you hungry?"

"You don't have to feel obligated to feed us," Toshiro said.

"No I insist!" Orihime smiled.

Toshiro's expression twisted kind of funny. "It's...all right. I have to patrol and I don't have time for human food to digest in the gigai. I'll find something later." He took a Soul Candy, evacuating his gigai, and left the building with a quick parting greeting.

"Huh, he must have been in a hurry!" Orihime said. "And I had extra red bean paste for the eggs. Oh well maybe next time!" She fixed breakfast for her and Ulquiorra, as well as packed them lunches. Ulquiorra stood silently, watching her, with his hands in his pockets.

"Are you okay?" Orihime asked him eventually after her cooking was complete.

Ulquiorra was taken aback by the question. He had asked this of her many times, but apparently was never on the receiving end. "I am not injured and my reiatsu is more stable today."

Orihime sighed. "I didn't mean physically. I meant…"

Would Ulquiorra even know what it was like to be _emotionally_ okay? It was complicated enough for humans to understand. She wished somehow he could figure out how to communicate with her some basic emotions, such as sadness, anger, or even happiness.

"Never mind, it's nothing," Orihime gave up.

Ulquiorra did not press the issue, and instead kept with his silent unreadable mood. He didn't even hold her hand, and instead walked with his hands in his pockets. Orihime was beginning to get frustrated. "Ulqui please say something!" She cried. She couldn't bear the silence on their walk.

Ulquiorra looked at her. "Is my entire name that much of a chore to say?"

Orihime blushed. She had given him a nickname without realizing it. Did she start calling him after they…after they… _Ohhh gosh! No did that really happen?_ "No, but I wanted to call you something special," she blurted out. _Ugh you idiot! Now everything is even more awkward! Is he mad about the kiss?_

"Why?" Ulquiorra inquired.

"B-because when you're close to someone you can call them a nickname kind of like…uhm…a title to show that they're important to you!" Orihime tried to hide her nervousness, but she was doing poorly.

 _"Princesa,"_ Ulquiorra said. "It is what the other arrancar started calling you. I believe it was meant to insult me and my position in caring for you, in a demeaning way. Yet…I can think of no other word to describe you."

"What's that mean?" Orihime asked.

"Princess," Ulquiorra replied.

"Oh! Like my name!" Orihime giggled.

"Well…yes," Ulquiorra said, a blush creeping onto his cheeks.

"Does your name mean anything?" Orihime pried. Any personal information she could get out of him was worth it.

"That's…an interesting question," Ulquiorra said, his eyes looking down at the sidewalk. "It does," he added quietly.

"Well? What is it?" Orihime persisted.

Ulquiorra didn't answer. He looked deep in thought for a while. Orihime wondered what made his name such a touchy subject. She would have asked Chad about it, as he spoke Spanish, but she felt like it wouldn't have been very meaningful for someone other than Ulquiorra to tell her.

"You can just…call me my name," Orihime assured him. "You don't _have_ to nickname me you know."

"Your name is already perfect, I see no need to change it," Ulquiorra said. "On another note, did you do any of your homework?"

Orihime's heart jumped. "Oh no! I haven't done homework! My grades have been suffering oh no what am I gonna do!?"

"Calm down, you can copy mine," Ulquiorra replied. "I used to not care about the homework at first but after a while I found it to be something to pass the time. Also it can be quite interesting, and a help to you if you do not understand something." He pointed at his eyes. "Are you aware I can tear my eyes out and share my memories with others?"

Orihime blinked. "Uh…that sounds horrible! It must hurt you! I hope Aizen didn't make you use it!"

"Fooli-uhm…It does not hurt me badly. I just regenerate," he assured her. "But that is beside the point. Anything said by the instructor I can recall and share with you if you need it. Although I doubt it, I can just help you with your homework if it is too difficult."

Orihime, overwhelmed by Ulquiorra's kindness, suddenly embraced him in a hug. He staggered back a step from the shock, but then returned the gesture carefully. His touch was always like Orihime was fragile, like he was afraid he would bring harm to her by just being near her. He smelled like the fruity shampoo he used, and her detergent, but something was still masculine about it. He felt strong and gave her a sense of security, despite not being much taller than she was.

"This is…nice, but we need to go inside so you can deal with your homework."

She had not thought this through, as her hug happened near the entrance to the high school, so other students walking by were able to see them.

Orihime let go of him. "Ah! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-"

"Stop apologizing and go inside," he ordered.

Orihime managed to copy Ulquiorra's homework answers before the teacher arrived in their classroom. Most of his answers seemed correct to her, which she was glad for. He even seemed to understand harder subject matter, and he hadn't ever been to school before! _He must be really, really smart…_ she thought in awe.

Ichigo arrived and took his seat. Orihime couldn't help but look over at him. She didn't know what it was, but he looked _different_ somehow. It was like he was less _sparkly_ to her. His scowl was no longer endearing or cute, instead it just inflicted a bit of pain in Orihime's heart. Looking at him began to bring her _discomfort_ , instead of the usual warm fuzziness inside her.

 _Oh no! Did something happen when Ulquiorra and I…? Am I really betraying him? I…I purposefully kissed Ulquiorra last night! How could I do such a thing to Ichigo!?_ Orihime tried to not let tears spill over from her eyes. She was in a full classroom! Crying in front of all these people would just embarrass her, or even worse, make people feel sad for her.

She got handed back her quiz, and to her relief the grade wasn't _too_ horrible. She would be able to make up for it if she studied hard. She was happy that Ulquiorra had let her copy his homework, but she couldn't help but feel extremely guilty about it. But she didn't want to fall behind on her rent and live in a motel again, and especially not let down Ulquiorra, Rangiku, and Toshiro.

"You look kinda out of it, Orihime," Tatsuki said that day at lunch. She was, surprisingly, eating lunch with Ichigo instead of the girls. Orihime wanted to be with Tatsuki, but she had trouble being in Ichigo's presence. Ulquiorra had disappeared, which slightly worried her, but he could be moody and if he didn't tell her where he went, it probably wasn't important.

"Oh me? No I'm fine!" Orihime said.

Ichigo crossed his arms. "Come on Orihime. You can rely on us. We're your friends."

Orihime heart beat faster. This was the first time Ichigo was giving her positive attention since he had lost his Soul Reaper powers. Yet, for some reason this attention felt _wrong_ somehow. Ichigo's words, "we're your friends" cut her to her core. Ichigo considered her a _friend…_

She decided to tell them a half truth to sort of put them at ease. "School's hard and my Aunt wants me to get a job! Just a lot on my plate you know!" _And I'm becoming attracted to an arrancar and Soul Reapers are living in my apartment because all of Hueco Mundo is after me!_ She exhaled, trying to mentally process the second unspoken part of her venting.

"Oh jeez, your Aunt can be a real pain," Tatsuki remarked. "I know she gives you money and all but you'd think she'd at least check in on you once in a while."

Orihime's distant Aunt was the least of her worries, but Tatsuki made her feel at least a little better.

"I don't know what kind of job you're lookin' for," Ichigo said. "So I can't help you with that."

"Oh! I found a job at a bakery we like so it'll be fine." _Wait…did I just say "we"? Like…Ulqui is my spouse or something?! Orihime why are you so weird?!_

"Well that's good," Ichigo replied, not noticing her blunder. He crossed his arms and fell silent, gazing out at the town below him.

Orihime awkwardly looked around at the other students. She was surprised to see Uryu and Ulquiorra, who were talking about something. This interaction deeply concerned her, and she went over to mediate in case something went wrong. Ulquiorra was, after all, the one who tore off Uryu's arm.

"Oh! Ul-Komori, I was wondering where you went," Orihime said, approaching them.

Ulquiorra's attention went to Orihime almost immediately. "I was speaking with Uryu."

"Your…friend is quite a good listener," Uryu said, adjusting his glasses. "So much so I forgot who I was talking to for a little while."

Orihime didn't want to pry, but she was very curious as to what they would be talking about. On the surface, the two couldn't be more different. Uryu was a Quincy, and his entire being was devoted to exterminating hollows. Ulquiorra's very existence must disgust him. Ulquiorra always seemed indifferent, and the only person he seemed to hold any semblance of a grudge against was Ichigo.

"You look like a begging puppy," Ulquiorra said, apparently reading Orihime's facial expression. "I was merely curious about whatever Quincy meant, and he told me."

"We stepped out for a bit because that's not something we can really talk about around others," Uryu explained. "We had our eyes out for you Orihime, don't you worry."

"I for one enjoy the thought of permanently eradicating my enemies," Ulquiorra said.

"W-what!?" Orihime gasped.

"It was a joke with intent to mildly upset you," Ulquiorra said with a small smile, looking over at Orihime as he did so.

Uryu's eyes opened wide. "I had no idea you was capable of smiling."

"Maybe there just isn't much to waste the effort on," Ulquiorra replied, his face falling.

Orihime giggled. She was glad Uryu seemed to be more comfortable with Ulquiorra, and didn't tell her she was wrong for being around him. Uryu seemed to be very supportive of this whole situation, even though he was the only one of her friends who knew the true identity of Komori.

The rest of the school day went better, Orihime's spirits lifted by Ulquiorra and Uryu getting along. She was able to focus a little bit better on her schoolwork, and was confident that she would do well on the next test.

Something else began to bug her. Uryu and Ulquiorra had told her "not to worry" when they had stepped out earlier to talk. They were, even though they had personal business with each other, had to think of Orihime first for her own safety. The last time the arrancar had attacked, she was nearly helpless. Even her shield broke! She _had_ to do something about her powers. She needed to be able to take care of herself, at least a little bit, in order to not worry or inconvenience anyone.

"Ulqui," Orihime said after school. "I don't want to go home right now. I…need to go to Urahara's."

Ulquiorra complied and followed her, but he seemed a bit restless. She didn't ask him about it, because she thought he probably wouldn't have been able to express his emotions to her anyways. Neither of them held hands on this walk either. Orihime was sure that the kiss from the night previous had done something to them, and an unspoken awkwardness sprung from the idea of physical contact. The last time she had touched him it was the hug from that morning, and she felt like she was melting into him. Maybe their fear of touching was just a fear that if they do…they'll never let go.


	13. Training

The night was crisp and clear. Kisuke filled his lungs with the fresh Karakura Town air, glad to be out of his stuffy workroom for the first time in days. He didn't even get the chance to fight those arrancar, and had to stay up a whole night working on an antidote to save Orihime. Finally, he ventured out of his candy store and prepared for his next on a long list of quests.

The Kurosaki's clinic was a regular destination for Kisuke. Many times he had barged in through Ichigo's window, proposing some scheme or offering some kind of assistance. This time, his arrival felt dreary and sad. Ichigo was busy doing homework, headphones over his ears, not noticing Kisuke open the window. Even if Ichigo had noticed, he still wouldn't have been able to see anyone there. Kisuke had purposefully evacuated his gigai, making sure this mission was done in stealth.

Kisuke entered the room and sat on the floor, watching Ichigo study for the few remaining minutes before he decided to go to sleep. He removed his headphones and stretched with a yawn, turned off his light, and collapsed into bed. Kisuke waited a bit longer for the boy to fall asleep, and then began with his plan.

"Hopefully this doesn't hurt you," Kisuke said with a bit of a grimace. "And if it does I'm really sorry. It can go on the long list of sins I've committed."

He hesitated, holding a device he invented in his hand. What he had to do was unethical, but it was just one thing Kisuke had to do in order to keep their world safe.

* * *

The warmth from Orihime's hug lingered with Ulquiorra through the school day. He felt a calming, warm, and bubbling sensation through his chest just recalling it. It was starting to distract him to the point his mind became a bit foggy. He looked towards Orihime during class and couldn't help himself from fantasizing about embracing her. Was this a normal thing to feel towards a friend?

 _Friends. That's right._ Ulquiorra had forgotten to ask Orihime about how to make friends, but he needed to start as soon as possible. Kurosaki was completely off the table. There was no way Ulquiorra could get an intelligent conversation out of that fool. Tatsuki could be a bit hotheaded, and Ulquiorra seemed to put her on edge more than usual. The strong, tall, and quiet friend of Orihime's showed up to school sporadically lately. This left only the bubbling school girls or…the Quincy Uryu Ishida.

What would he say? Would he approach Uryu and say "I would like to be your friend"? That seemed…incorrect for some reason. Asking to be a friend directly felt taboo. He had to find some reason to approach Uryu without seeming suspicious.

Oh. He _did_ actually have an idea of what to start off with. He would wait for lunch, and approach him then.

"Uryu," Ulquiorra said to the Quincy when it was time. "I need to speak with you."

Uryu, who seemed a bit sullen, was surprised by Ulquiorra even speaking to him. "About…what?"

"Orihime," Ulquiorra replied.

Uryu motioned for Ulquiorra to follow him. "Come on. We can't talk about this stuff around other people."

The two walked outside of earshot, down a few hallways and finally to the outdoors. It was then that Uryu finally spoke again. "What about her? Is she in danger?"

"I just wanted to ask a favor of you," Ulquiorra said.

"And what kind of favor could I possibly do for a hollow?" Uryu said, adjusting his glasses.

"I…" Ulquiorra's pocketed hands fidgeted. This had been weighing on his mind for a while. "If I am ever a threat to Orihime or this world she loves, I want you to help Urahara kill me."

"You don't even have to ask," Uryu replied.

"And, I want you to protect Orihime if that happens," Ulquiorra continued.

"You don't have to ask about that either," Uryu said.

There was a bit of silence.

"You don't seem like that bad of a guy for a hollow," Uryu spoke up reluctantly.

"Arrancar," Ulquiorra corrected. Before the conversation died out, he decided to have it continue. "I had been meaning to ask you. What is a Quincy? Your fighting style is vastly different from that of a Soul Reaper."

Uryu's body language seemed to immediately change from someone who was guarded to someone full of confidence. "Well you see they…" he started on a monologue about Quincy, to which Ulquiorra listened with a few spare questions. Uryu was so into this explanation it was almost comical, but Ulquiorra did not mind. In fact he was sort of enjoying listening to someone other than Orihime go one for once, especially about something considered more "intelligent."

Uryu asked a few questions about Arrancar as well, which Ulquiorra did his best to explain. Ulquiorra stated he did not care what happened to his fellow arrancar or hollows, and Uryu could do as he pleased. If anything, the arrancar and hollows were too brash and uncivilized for his taste.

Orihime eventually found Ulquiorra and approached them. The arrancar was quite pleased with himself that he had managed to have a conversation with one of Orihime's friends that didn't end in some threat of physical violence.

On their walk to Urahara's, by request of Orihime, the girl spoke up about that day at school.

"I'm glad you were able to talk to Uryu!" Orihime said with a large smile. "He's always so lonely and is always off by himself. Kinda like you in a way."

Ulquiorra wasn't sure what to make of her claim, but he supposed he agreed. "I wish…to be friends with your friends."

Orihime's face lit up. Her original tired expression turned to one of pure joy. "Oh really? I'm-I'm so glad! We can do all sorts of fun things together, like go shopping or go to fun places like festivals or-"

"Slowly, please," Ulquiorra pleaded. "Conversing with humans easily drains whatever energy I have."

Orihime blushed and giggled. Ulquiorra felt energy returning to him by just _looking_ at her. He had the urge to kiss her, but refrained, as that seemed like an irrational thing to do. Besides, he wasn't even sure what that level of a kiss _meant_.

"Well helloooo Orihime!" Said Urahara when they arrived. "Oh and of course your handsome companion. What can I do for you? You've been taking your medicine, right?"

"I've made sure of it," Ulquiorra said.

Orihime gasped. "Nel? Is that you?"

"Orihime!" said Nel as she emerged from the back counter. She gave the girl a big hug. "I heard about you getting hurt, but you left before Grimmy and I could say hello!"

"You dumb idiot I thought I told you to knock it off with the stupid nicknames!" growled Grimmjow, emerging from the back.

Orihime froze, and Ulquiorra stood in front of her protectively. "Your presence is frightening my-Orihime…" _My what? What was I going to say? Odd…_

"I've got no business with you, woman," Grimmjow said, possibly in an attempt to make Orihime feel at ease. "Now with that idiot Kurosaki-"

"Ichigo can't fight you!" Orihime said in defense of her friend. "So don't even think about it."

This level of ferocity made Ulquiorra glance at Orihime in shock. He had only seen this level of determination in her a few times, but it was something he was fascinated with. O

_If only she'd act like this when confronted with her own danger._

"Now, now calm down," Urahara interrupted. "He's not gonna hurt you or Ichigo, Orihime. He's currently under my orders." Grimmjow made a noise and stuck his hands in his pockets. "Anyway, before we were rudely interrupted, what brings you here?"

Orihime stood, her chest out confidently. "I want to train."

"Well you've done quite a bit of training under me before," Urahara pointed out.

"I'm…I'm not strong enough," Orihime said. "I need to be strong enough so that my friends don't have to worry about me."

 _Ah, for her friends. What a foolish girl, must I spell everything out for her?_ "She needs to be _realistically_ strong enough to protect herself. Her powers were unstable the last time I saw them put to use, and other than their healing capability they were not useful against the arrancar." He swallowed when he saw Orihime's hurt look on her face. Was the truth that painful to her? He only wanted to help.

"Ulquiorra, as I've told Orihime before, she's not suited for combat," Urahara said. "Her attacks aren't-"

"I am aware," Ulquiorra said. "I will destroy anything or anyone that threatens her. But if I cannot get there in time, she has to have the ability to stay alive. The last time she was badly hurt and I could never bear to see that happen again."

Everyone was staring at Ulquiorra with mixed expressions. Urahara was hiding some sort of smirk behind his open fan, Grimmjow's mouth was open as if he was going to speak but couldn't, and Nel's face was blushing. Orihime's eyes were wide and glistened with tears, but she did not cry. She simply touched Ulquiorra on the shoulder with a gentle hand.

"Are you _really_ Ulquiorra?" Nel finally managed to ask.

"Who else would I be?" Ulquiorra sighed.

"Well…I can't say no to _that_ little display," Urahara chuckled.

"I'll help train her, Urahara!" Nel said cheerfully. "I don't like fighting needlessly either, so we'll probably be a good match."

"Damn, Nelliel, talkin' like you don't love a good takedown," Grimmjow snarled.

"You can _shut up_ Grimmy!" Nel said, her face bright red for some reason.

Ulquiorra rolled his eyes.

* * *

"Oh! Owowow…oh, that's gonna be sore tomorrow…"

It was dark when Ulquiorra and Orihime were making their way home. Orihime had trained hard all day, getting tossed around by Nel who was a rough opponent. She apparently had no qualms about throwing blows at Orihime, which the poor girl sometimes took. Nel wasn't using lethal force by any means, but her blows probably could have broken something if they had fully connected. Nel _would_ use strong force against Orihime's shields, seeing how much power she could use before breaking them.

Ulquiorra watched mostly from a safe distance, perched on top of a rock in Urahara's training ground (He flinched every time Nel was "too rough" with Orihime). He eventually went off by himself somewhere to practice his swordsmanship and spar with Grimmjow. That fight was eventually broken up by Urahara, because Grimmjow was going to use his sword release, and actually attempted to kill Ulquiorra. Twice. Ulquiorra's regeneration worked just fine to heal himself, and he made an unsuccessful attempt to try to hide the remaining blood from Orihime. She scolded him and told him he had to take a bath when they got back home.

"You are the one who should take a bath," Ulquiorra scolded Orihime. "Nel hit you fairly hard a few times. I would tell you to heal yourself but I fear what the effects of the poison will do."

"Oh I'll be fine. I'll just take some Tylenol and use some ice," Orihime assured him. She smiled, her worries beginning to lift from just looking at him. He had defended her when she requested to train, and had said that it would hurt him to see her hurt! It made her feel good inside, just knowing that he really did care a lot for her.

 _Oh...the kiss…_ she thought, touching her fingers to her mouth in recollection. Her heart started beating rapidly. She just…didn't know what to _do_. She felt like giving into these growing feelings was natural, but her loyalty to Ichigo kept holding her back. Besides, Ulquiorra was confused and didn't feel _that_ way about her…right?

"Orihime," Ulquiorra said right as the girl was about to open the front door.

"Oh, yes?" Orihime asked.

"You will be safe here if the Soul Reapers are with you," Ulquiorra stated. "I wish to train some more. This time I can use more force without fear of bringing harm to you. Is…that all right with you?"

Orihime sensed at least Rangiku inside her apartment, so she knew she would be safe from an attack. "Oh! Uhm, sure! Just uh…don't hurt yourself, okay?" Her eyes pleaded with him.

Ulquiorra pecked Orihime on the cheek before turning to leave. "I'm more concerned for Grimmjow," he joked as he walked away.

Orihime touched her cheek. She walked into the apartment, her heart heavy, but then was slightly shocked at the image in front of her.

Rangiku was lazing in front of the tv, an empty bento box in front of her, and she was eating directly out of a tub of ice cream. She was dressed in one of Orihime's robes, with a towel on her head, signifying she had just bathed.

"Oh! You're back!" Rangiku smiled, sitting up. "I just got back a while ago. The captain still is out, because he wanted to be alone for a while. Anyway, did you eat yet? You're back late. And where's that precious Ulqui of yours? For an arrancar he's pretty cute if you ask me."

Orihime sat down next to Rangiku. "We were training with Urahara," she explained. "He went back to continue after walking me here."

Rangiku's facial expression turned serious. "Orihime, is something wrong?"

Could she ask Rangiku about her feelings? Or would she just be too much of a burden? Orihime felt tears slide down her cheeks from just thinking about everything, the emotions in her chest ready to burst. "I'm sorry. I know I cry a lot but…I'm just so confused right now."

"Oh? About what?" Rangiku asked.

"I'm…remember how I said that…a while back, I was worried I wasn't a special person for Ichigo?" Orihime said. "Well I…kind of thought I was a special person to him. Until…well…I actually _am_ a special person to someone else."

Rangiku raised her eyebrows.

"Ulquiorra told me that I…that I made him able to see the world differently," Orihime continued. "He's completely devoted himself to me. At first I knew it was because he was curious, but now he's actually…" She blushed. "I…can't believe what I'm feeling. I want to be with him and I want to protect and take care of him, but I feel like I'm just betraying Ichigo for doing so! Now when I look at Ichigo, all I feel is uncomfortable! He no longer makes me feel the same way he did, and I don't know what to do!" She sniffed and grabbed a box of tissues that was sitting near the tv. She began telling stories about her and Ulquiorra's experiences together, but she purposefully omitted the kiss they had shared.

"Oh…oh honey," Rangiku said softly, opening her arms for Orihime to embrace her. "Feelings change, you know. Especially for young girls like you. You crushed on Ichigo for a long time as a child, but you've started to outgrow your feelings. It seems to me like Ulquiorra tends to actually reciprocate your feelings, or at least he wants to see you happy."

Orihime sniffed. "Rangiku…he's a _hollow._ He's a hollow who hurt my friends because Aizen ordered him to."

"Orihime! Life's too short to care about that type of thing," Rangiku scolded. "Who cares if he's a hollow? He's hella cute and would totally die for you right now. And who cares if he was loyal to Aizen at some point? He's _obviously_ not now. I would _kill_ for a man with that kind of passion and devotion."

"But what about Ichigo?" Orihime asked. "If I don't love him I-"

"He's still your friend isn't he?" Rangiku pointed out. "If he's still your friend then of course you'll still be there to help him. Having romantic feelings for someone doesn't change the love you have for your friends."

Rangiku was right. Orihime took a deep breath. "I guess…it's just hard to accept Ichigo never liked me back that way."

"I know, but you need to move on now," Rangiku said. "Sometimes in life there are things you need to move on from."

Orihime sat up and took a deep breath. She had to confront her feelings head-on! She wasn't sure how she'd explain to Ulquiorra how she felt in a way that he'd understand. He was someone that she felt comfort by being near him. Every day she'd wake up excited to show him something new. She felt complete almost, like he was something she had been missing. She also wasn't sure if what he felt for her was the same, but she would just have to be brave.

* * *

_There was blood. So much blood. Orihime turned around to face who had caused her Soul Reaper escorts to die horrible deaths. She tried to heal them, but she was stopped by an intense, suffocating reiatsu._

_The arrancar before her was nearly all pure white, save for his black hair, cheeks stained with tears, and brilliant green eyes. He wasn't very tall, probably only a few inches taller than she was, but he stood with such confidence one would not dare question his power. Yet, something about him did not terrify Orihime. She had just seen what he was capable of with his bare hands, but for some reason she could not bring herself to be afraid. It was almost like she had confronted a sad, lost cat who only attacked people out of necessity to survive._

_The arrancar had kept Orihime as prisoner in his tower. He was not violent like all the others. He did not verbally berate her, nor did he attempt to physically harm her. Quite the opposite; he would keep guard and make sure no arrancar dared touch her._

_He had no passion regarding Orihime's imprisonment. He was simply doing it out of orders by Aizen himself. He was acting as an extension of Aizen, but Orihime never sensed his agreement or approval of the action. In fact, this arrancar seemed unable to have any opinions at all, functioning cold and lifelessly like a statue._

_Eventually, his more curious side seemed to surface. He would gradually spend more time with Orihime, not out of malicious or manipulative intent, but simply because he wanted to. He would listen to Orihime talk about various human things, sometimes nodding off to sleep when she did so. Orihime began to think he was peaceful and less threatening when he was so vulnerable._

_Then, there was Ichigo. The arrancar began showing signs of emotional distress during this battle. He even had protected Orihime a few times, where Ichigo had been careless or failed to do so. He was confused, so confused that despite him nearly killing Ichigo twice, Orihime couldn't bear to hate him. All she felt from him was his deep, dark despair, and a sense of loneliness. Perhaps if she could just reach him…_

Orihime opened her eyes. She had begun to nod off while she was in the bathtub. She decided it was time for her bath to be over, so she dried off and climbed out. She put on a tshirt and shorts for her pajamas, brushed her teeth, and decided to quietly head for bed. Rangiku was already fast asleep, and Toshiro and Ulquiorra were nowhere to be found.

Orihime decided to sit up and wait for Ulquiorra, despite it being late and she had school the next morning. She then realized she forgot to do her homework again and decided to do that while she waited.

About an hour passed and no one came home. Orihime began to worry. Was Ulquiorra intending on staying at Urahara's all night? Was Toshiro ever going to get any sleep? Did he eat any meals today? Orihime tucked her homework in her bag and decided to go to bed to get some sleep before school. Toshiro was a captain and Ulquiorra was a former espada. They could take care of themselves.

It was the next morning. Orihime opened her eyes to see something peering over her. She yelped and hit her head on her headboard as she sat up, then rubbed the sore spot tenderly.

"Yoruichi?"

A black cat was sitting on Orihime's lap. It was originally on her chest, but Orihime sitting up had knocked it off.

"Ah yes, good morning Orihime," said the cat Yoruichi. Orihime knew to not let the male voice fool her. Yoruichi was a beautiful woman who disguised herself as a cat in the world of the living.

"Yoruichi, what are you doing here?" Orihime asked. "I haven't seen you in-"

"Come on, lets get you ready for school first," Yoruichi insisted, hopping off of Orihime's bed. "You overslept a little. Rangiku already left, but there's still time enough if you don't want to be late."

Orihime jumped out of bed. She felt a bit sick, which she knew was the result of the poison, so she went to take her medicine. She giggled when she could hear Ulquiorra's voice snapping at her to take it. She soon got dressed in her uniform and went into the kitchen to grab a quick breakfast and pack a lunch. She stopped when she realized she hadn't seen Ulquiorra at all that morning, and turned to Yoruichi. "Is Ulquiorra still with Urahara?"

"He's…not coming to school today," Yoruichi said.

Orihime's brow furrowed. "He's never missed school!"

"Orihime," Yoruichi said, patting on a cushion next to her with her paw. "Come here and sit down."

Orihime obeyed, her heart pained with worry.

"Ulquiorra is fine," the cat said slowly. "But, he's currently hurt and unable to leave the shop."

"That's _not_ fine!" Orihime exclaimed. "I have to go to him and-"

"You cant use your healing powers yet Orihime!" Yoruichi ordered. "His injuries are too extreme for you in your weakened state to try to fix! We don't know exactly what that poison will do to you, and we certainly don't want you using your type of power that relies so much on your physical being." She sighed. "I'm sorry, I did not mean to be harsh with you."

Orihime forced a smile. "Oh, it's okay, really. I'm sure Urahara and Tessai will take good care of him. I'll go see him after school then."

"He doesn't want to see you."

Orihime's heart sank into the pit of her stomach. "He…what?"

Ulquiorra didn't want to see her? Orihime couldn't believe it. All he did was cling to her, but now he wanted space? She didn't understand. "What happened?" Orihime continued after a bit of silence.

"Arrancar," Yoruichi replied.

 _He's hurt from protecting me._ _That's why he doesn't want to see me. He's angry with me._ Orihime's eyes filled with tears. "I'm so sick of people getting hurt on my behalf," she cried. "Ulquiorra already died once in a fight over me! And I couldn't…" She held her face in her hands.

Yoruichi put a paw on Orihime's lap. "You're working to get stronger. But don't dismiss your friend's honor and will to protect you so easily. They chose to help you, so you should feel grateful that they did."

Orihime reluctantly agreed, and rushed her way off to school.

* * *

The Soul Society had many dark secrets. But some of these secrets were kept with the utmost caution, as if revealed they would cause widespread panic. The Soul Reaper's main goal, at least those of them who join the Thirteen Court Guard Squads willingly, was to protect humans from otherworldly threats. Of course, to the higher ups this was false, but the good intentioned people that made up the Soul Reapers kept this truth at bay.

Deep in a prison cell, at the very lowest level of the highest security prison, sat a man who had challenged everything a Soul Reaper fought for. His goals were misunderstood, or simply too intelligent for the normal person. He wished to transcend and become a true god, to rid this world of its lies and bring a truth only he could give it. Yet, he had been stopped. Stopped by his own mistake, his own abomination that he had created and allowed to exist.

Despite this major setback, he smiled to himself. Well, he would have smiled if he could. His entire body was bound with incredibly powerful seals. No matter what they did, they could not seal his mind, so he was free to think for the twenty thousand years they would have him locked there.

 _One of my creations may have been the end of me,_ he thought. _But it will be one that liberates me._


	14. Fight

Ulquiorra tried to sleep that night, but it was to no avail. He kept tossing and turning, kicking on and off the blankets, and even laid on his stomach for a bit. Hitsugaya was fast asleep, dead to the world and seemingly unbothered by Ulquiorra's insomnia.

"I need…fresh air," he mumbled, climbing out of bed and walking outside. He sat on the roof to think, holding his blank zanpakto against his lap. He had begun making a habit of sitting on the roof. He kind of liked it, being perched on the roof up high, able to see the town below him. It gave him a sense of comfort, like when he could perch on top of the dome of Las Noches and no one could reach him.

"Good evening," said a man's voice.

Ulquiorra's head snapped in its direction. He had been so unfocused he didn't notice any spiritual pressure of anyone approaching him. To his surprise, a slender black cat with a silky short coat was padding its way towards him on the rooftop.

"You look shocked," he said, sitting down next to Ulquiorra and curling his tail next to his own body.

"Last time I checked cats were not on the list of creatures able to speak in the human world," Ulquiorra replied. "Or I am hallucinating, which would not surprise me at this point." He held up the blank zanpakto. "You wouldn't happen to be Mercialego, would you? Although I thought that meant bat…"

The cat laughed. "No, sorry, I'm not your zanpakto. My name is Yoruichi. I'm a…friend of Kisuke Urahara."

Ulquiorra relaxed. "Ah. I see."

"I just arrived back from a trip," Yoruichi said. "And I was dying to meet you. It's not every day an arrancar as powerful as yourself is on such friendly terms with a human."

"Unfortunately for you, I am not much of a conversation partner," Ulquiorra said.

Yoruichi chuckled. "You're certainly modest. Men could learn from you. Often times they talk too much and don't know when to stop."

Ulquiorra was about to respond when he felt a strong reiatsu. Yoruichi perked up as well, his ears flattening against his skull. "Arrancar!" He hissed.

Ulquiorra stood and grabbed his zanpakto. "They feel stronger this time." _This isn't good. They could cause major damage to the town._

Ulquiorra began his rush towards the arrancar's location, followed close behind by Hitsugaya, who had also felt the disturbance and had evacuated his gigai. The two said nothing to each other, but they both understood that they would be working together against these foes.

The two managed to hide their presence behind a building nearby the garganta that had opened in the sky. There were five arrancar, all modified and resembling the more monster-like hollows. They were led by a human looking arrancar, but something was off about their reiatsu. It was like it was...pulsing, like a human organ. It was slightly unstable, but when it was strong it was as powerful as Grimmjow's.

"Our main concern is to prevent them from using their ressureccion," Ulquiorra said. "Especially the one in the center. The reiatsu from his release alone could kill many humans and destroy much of this town."

"That's comforting," Hitsugaya groaned.

"Come out, Ulquiorra, I know you're there," said the leader arrancar with a sing-song voice. His voice was light and airy, yet full of a sort of poison.

Ulquiorra did as told, but Hitsugaya stayed hidden in the shadows. The former espada floated to the edge of one of the buildings, his hands in his pockets. "I am here. What of it? Last I checked trash like yourself doesn't give me orders."

The arrancar, who possessed long blonde hair and a toothy mask around his neck, gave a wicked, wide grin. He was thin as a rail and had an obviously unpleasant personality. Ulquiorra thought he recognized him as one of the discarded numeros, but a simple numeros shouldn't have had reiatsu this strong. "Calling me trash? Oh that's rich coming from a human lover like you."

"What is so wrong with my lo…interest in a human," Ulquiorra stated. "We all used to be one at some point. Our powers come from the desires we had as humans. It is only natural that I-"

"Shut up and just die already!" The arrancar screamed, aiming a bala at Ulquiorra, who promptly dodged it. It was about to explode into a building, but Hitsugaya gave away his hiding spot in order to deflect the damage. The arrancar laughed. "Fighting alongside a Soup Reaper? You have absolutely gone insane!"

"Let us take this somewhere else," Ulquiorra said. He gestured towards a forest, where there were bound to be less people and buildings for them to damage.

The arrancar's target was apparently Ulquiorra, so they had no argument against following them. Hitsugaya stayed close behind them, but had managed to hide himself again from view.

Ulquiorra landed on the ground, his hands in his pockets, but ready to draw his sword is necessary.

"I am Zyrik Vanor," the arrancar introduced himself, landing in front of Ulquiorra. "And I am going to kill you."

"Quite confident, facing the fourth espada without your fracciones, which I will assume that is what those _things_ were supposed to be," Ulquiorra said.

Zyrik's eyes narrowed. "My power has greatly surpassed yours, even in your released state." He drew his zanpakto and held it in front of him. "Now slither, Lagartija."

Ulquiorra felt chills from the reiatsu that came from Zyrik's sword release. This arrancar was _strong_ , and unusually so. He had the same reiatsu levels of Grimmjow in his _released_ form, and Ulquiorra had trouble lately with Grimmjow in his base form. The fourth espada was not going to give up, but he was no longer going to tread so lightly. He removed both his hands from his pockets and drew his sword, taking a defensive stance.

Zyrik laughed. He stepped forwards, his ressureccion having transformed him into a bent over white creature with sharp claws and a long boney tail. Unlike normal ressureccions, however, he possessed purple pulsing membranes around his skin, which appeared to be the source of his massive reiatsu. "Oh? Are you scared? Of course you are once you've seen me."

Zyrik lunged for Ulquiorra at an incredible speed. Ulquiorra barely managed to dodge, Zyrik's sword slicing open Ulquiorra's cheek. His wound healed up nearly instantly, but he was more concerned about Zyrik's incredible speed. Ulquiorra began blocking blows from several different directions, having some difficulty matching Zyrik's movements. Was there something wrong with him? No, Ulquiorra felt fine.

It was his opponent. He was _faster_.

Ulquiorra knew he would have to use a cero to find an opening. He felt more comfortable with that thought while out in the forest, but causing a massive amount of damage would still be inconvenient for the humans.

"What's wrong? You look confused," Zyrik taunted. "Aw, are you worried about the humans? Should I go kill that lovely Princesa of yours? Will that make you take me seriously?!"

"No!" Ulquiorra shouted suddenly, losing grip of his emotions. Rage boiled from the pit of his stomach. How _dare_ this garbage threaten Orihime to his face. He lunged for Zyrik before his mind could clear from the taunt.

This was exactly what Zyrik had hoped for. Ulquiorra's wild lunge with his sword was easy for him to dodge and counterattack. He impaled Ulquiorra with his long bony tail through his stomach. Ulquiorra felt his entire body feel ill. Was this some sort of poison? Was it the same poison used on Orihime? Ulquiorra'a mind was reeling, and pain seared from the wound as Zyrik forcefully removed his tail and threw Ulquiorra to the ground.

Ulquiorra tried to prop himself up, expecting the wound to begin to heal. It did not, and instead somehow seemed to get worse. The poison began to burn through his flesh, and Ulquiorra grit hit teeth to keep from screaming.

"You barely gave me a fight at all!" Zyrik yelled, kicking Ulquiorra in the chest repeatedly as the former espada lay helpless on the ground. "Is this what Lord Aizen's Espada were like? Pathetic! We always knew it would be us instead."

Ulquiorra, through the pain, was trying to piece together what Zyrik had said.

"Honestly I expected more from your arrancar friends."

Hitsugaya, a long dragon made of ice behind him, was glaring at Zyrik. "Now that I've finished them off…" He pointed his blade at Zyrik. "…I can take care of you."

Ulquiorra couldn't say anything. All he could do is watch from his helpless position on the ground. He could barely breathe, as his blood slowly filling his lungs. He had vomited blood all over himself and the ground. He knew he must look absolutely pitiful. He wished he could have died right then and there…again. That familiar hopelessness returned to him, and Hitsugaya "saving" him meant nothing to change that. Ulquiorra wasn't strong enough anymore to protect Orihime from her foes.

Hitsugaya entered his bankai. The cold air from the sword release felt good to Ulquiorra's rising bodily temperature. Hitsugaya then proceeded to freeze and cut Zyrik in two, almost so effortlessly it made Ulquiorra want to die on the spot.

"Without your distraction, I would have never have been able to catch him off guard," Hitsugaya said, kneeling down next to Ulquiorra. He picked up the arrancar, who would have protested if he had the strength. "I'm taking you to Urahara for treatment. Try to stay conscious."

Ulquiorra felt ashamed being carried bridal-style by a tiny Soul Reaper, and felt like his dignity couldn't have been lower. Grimmjow helped bring him inside, and despite Ulquiorra expecting him to poke fun, the sixth espada was rather sullen and respectful for once. Nel was beside herself, wishing she had gone to help against the arrancar.

"They've been defeated," said Hitsugaya, trying to put Nel's fears to rest. "They are strong but nothing I couldn't handle. I'm relieved they allowed the officers assigned to this mission to leave Soul Society without having their Spirit energy sealed."

"Were they that much trouble?" Urahara asked as he began to take a look at Ulquiorra's wounds. "Yikes, this must hurt Mr. Arrancar."

"I've already died once," Ulquiorra said. "The real injury was to my pride." His voice wheezed hoarsely, which then ended in him coughing up more blood all over Urahara.

"Okay! New rule no talking because I think you'll puke your insides out if you do," Urahara ordered.

Ulquiorra obeyed and closed his eyes to rest.

When he awoke, he was bandaged and hooked up to a bunch of machines. Ulquiorra sat up and clawed at the needle in his arm, but a ragged and unpleasant smelling Urahara forcefully pushed Ulquiorra back down. "Stay down. Try not to move. The liquid in that bag is the only thing keeping you alive. That poison infects arrancar drastically differently than a human. Do you want to turn into those monsters?"

Ulquiorra thought back to the disgusting version of a resurreccion he witnessed the night previous. "Perhaps…if it gave me the power to defeat them."

"You idiot, you'd actually hurt Orihime by just being around her if that poison was in your body," Urahara pointed out. "Your original ressureccion if I'm not mistaken was so powerful you could have destroyed Las Noches, _and_ your reiatsu changed into a unique form. You don't have a need for lame poison upgrades. To be honest that sounds like a downgrade to me."

"You like to talk," Ulquiorra said. "There is no point in living if I cannot protect Orihime and keep her safe. I would cast myself into darkness to protect her, and never touch her again if it meant her safety."

"Touch you say?" Urahara grinned. "Did ya get frisky with miss Orihime?"

"I don't…" Ulquiorra blushed and averted his eyes away from Urahara. "You are worse than Grimmjow."

"I meant to talk to you about your ressureccion anyway," Urahara said, pointing at the blank Zanpakto lying next to Ulquiorra in the cot. "Did Aizen ever teach you how to enter your inner world?"

"There was no need," Ulquiorra said. "Upon becoming arrancar, when we took our more human-like forms, the hollow power latched on easily to the swords assigned to us. We really only heard it tell us its name, but since we technically are our ressureccion, we do not commune with them."

"How did you obtain a second release then?" Urahara asked.

"Oh. That," Ulquiorra sighed. He felt a little embarrassed about the nature of his power, but he knew pure honesty was best when dealing with Urahara. "The farther into despair I fell, the stronger I became, until one day I could just…take that form. The Espada's power comes from their aspect of death, as mine is of Nihilism. I…suspect I have lost my powers due to my contact with Orihime. She…makes me feel hope, which is completely counter to my source of power." He clenched his fist. "I've known that I have to abandon her to keep her safe, to regain my powers again, but the pain of that keeps me from-

"All right _you_ talk a lot," Urahara interrupted. "Don't give me that abandoning Orihime crap. That is the *worst* thing you could do to her. I don't know if you'll like this idea very much, but I think we should take the Soul Reaper route regarding your Zanpakto."

"Could be worse," Ulquiorra said.

"You're still recovering, but once you're well we can get started," Urahara said, turning to leave the room.

"Urahara," Ulquiorra called after him.

Urahara spun around. "Hm?"

"Don't let Orihime see me like this," Ulquiorra said. "I don't want to see her at all."

Urahara nodded in understanding.

* * *

Ichigo sat up and rubbed his forehead. He looked with bleary eyes towards the clock by his bedside. 10 am. He had overslept, but he usually did on a Saturday.

"Ichigo!" Came Yuzu's voice from the other side of the door. "We ate breakfast already but I set some aside for you!"

Ichigo mumbled some response and began to change into some clothes. He ran his fingers through his hair, not really caring much about combing it, and sped downstairs.

"Hey where's Karin?" Ichigo asked, his mouth full of his breakfast.

"Oh…she…just left," Yuzu said carefully.

Karin, who had been making several disappearances from the house lately, made Ichigo feel uneasy. With the unusual behavior coming from his friends of late, Ichigo decided it would be best to follow Karin to see where she was going. Yuzu protested when Ichigo flew out the door, leaving an unfinished breakfast behind.

He spotted Karin walking down the street, and he hid from her view. She was by herself, dressed in a pair of shorts and a tshirt. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, other than the fact she was headed in a direction Ichigo had never seen her go.

 _These streets…this is near Urahara's_ , Ichigo thought. _There's no way she…_

Sure enough, Karin's destination was indeed Urahara's store.

Ichigo hid behind a wall and watched closely. _Calm down, she's probably just going there to buy candy or something. Urahara's crazy but he wouldn't turn my sister into a Soul Reaper…would he?_

"Oh, hello Karin!" Smiled the girl Ururu. She was sweeping up in front of the shop as Karin approached.

"Oh, hey," Karin said gruffly. She never was very good with people, and it made Ichigo feel concerned for her.

"Oh shut up! I'm bein' gentle with it okay? Leave me alone!"

Ichigo's blood ran cold. He knew that voice. It brought back a sensation of instant danger, activating his fight or flight response. _There's no way...there's no way…._

Sure enough, a familiar face with slicked back blue hair appeared carrying several heavy looking boxes. He was dressed in an apron, and didn't seem very threatening. Ichigo stared for a few dazed moments, before collecting himself in confusion.

 _How can I see him?_ Ichigo thought in alarm. _Maybe it's just a human that looks like him? No…there's no way…_

Grimmjow's face snarled and he looked in Ichigo's hiding spot. "Hey idiot quit spyin' on us! If you got business here then just hurry up and get on with it!"

Ichigo wanted to run, but he couldn't leave Karin with someone so dangerous. He leapt out of his hiding spot and clenched hid fists. "DAMMIT WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" he shouted, somewhat out of concern for Karin's whereabouts but mostly directed towards Grimmjow.

Karin looked shocked and guilty, as if she had been caught in the act of a crime. Grimmjow immediately dropped the boxes he was carrying and took a defensive stance. "If it isn't Kurosaki!" He growled.

"The hell? Where's your mask?" Ichigo pointed out. His confusion was starting to affect him physically; he was getting a headache.

"This is a gigai you moron," said Grimmjow. "Gotta wear it. Boss' orders."

"Boss…?" Ichigo asked.

"Calm down Ichigo," Karin suddenly snapped. "Grimm's not gonna do anything to you. He works for Urahara."

"He…what?" Ichigo blinked. He stormed for the front door, unable to process this any longer. "Urahara!" He shouted, bursting into the shop. "Urahara where are you, you bastard!"

"Ichigo? Is that you?"

Before Ichigo could react, he was tackled from behind by someone, nearly knocking him to the floor.

"Oh Ichigo! I've missed you!" Came the cries of a young woman.

"N-nel?" Ichigo exclaimed the moment he recognised her.

"Oh you remember!" Nel grinned, elated. "Urahara said Nel wasn't allowed to see Itsygo yet, but Nel's not breaking any rules since you came to Nel!" She began reverting to her childlike state of speech due to her excitement.

"Whoa! Calm down there Nel, you'll crush him!" Came Urahara's voice.

Urahara looked disappointed at Ichigo's appearance. Ichigo on the other hand was filled with rage.

"What the hell?! When were you gonna tell me espadas were staying in Karakura Town!?" Ichigo shouted.

"I don't see why I should be telling you Soul Society business when you're no longer a Soul Reaper," Urahara said. He sighed. "What would the point be telling you something to worry over when there's nothing you can do about it? I'm not going to let you get yourself killed by doing something stupid."

Urahara's words sliced through Ichigo's heart like a sharp blade. Urahara wasn't stupid. Of course he wouldn't just tell Ichigo Soul Society business. It wasn't his place anymore. He stuck his hand in his pocket and clenched the soul reaper badge tucked away in it so tightly his hand began to hurt.

"If there is danger, Nel will protect Ichigo and Ichigo's family!" Nel said, closing her fists and punching the air.

Ichigo's mood was elevated, and he managed to smile. He hated others putting themselves in danger for his sake, but Nel was a powerful ally. As far as he could tell, judging by her adult appearance, Nel had regained much of her power. "Thanks Nel," Ichigo said quietly. He then turned to leave. "Guess I'll be going then."

"Not so fast!" Grimmjow said, standing in front of the door.

"Oh...dear," Urahara sighed.

"Get out of the way," Ichigo grumbled.

"Not without a fight, Kurosaki!" Grimmjow ordered.

"I don't have my powers!" Ichigo yelled. "So just forget it! I can't fight you even if I wanted to!"

Grimmjow's eyes narrowed. "I'm stuck in this meat suit, makin' me just as fragile as you are. We can fight like this, I don't care."

"No, no don't injure the poor boy," Urahara said, trying to diffuse the situation.

"I'm fighting him," Ichigo said in a fierce tone, silencing Urahara. He began stretching the muscles in his arms. "So are we gonna take this outside?"

Grimmjow'a face broke into a wicked grin. "Oh _hell_ yeah!"

* * *

Ulquiorra had been bedridden for a few days, but a commotion outside of the shop had peaked his curiosity enough to crawl out of bed. Someone had neglected to feed him lunch, and he was about to go and obtain some himself when he heard shouting from the other room. He couldn't feel any Spiritual Pressure, so it must have been Grimmjow doing something idiotic again.

Ulquiorra's entire body felt like lead. He had to be given a much stronger antidote for the poison intravenously than Orihime, getting massive doses of it thrice a day. Urahara had, to Ulquiorra's horror, invented a needle that could pierce even an Espada's hierro. It was an odd experience being jabbed with a needle for the first time, but Ulquiorra was glad this prevented his death. The sooner the poison left his system, the better. He could then focus his energy on training with his zanpakto.

"What is going on?" Ulquiorra muttered, the arm with the IV stuck in it falling loosely at his side. He had to hold it steady as to prevent damage to the IV.

"What the hell are you doing up?" Urahara scolded him.

"I was hungry and you idiots haven't fed me," Ulquiorra snapped. "My spiritual pressure won't-"

"Calm down you're not going to die because your tummy hurts," Urahara grinned, handing a candy bar to Ulquiorra. "Here."

"This hardly qualifies as a meal," Ulquiorra groaned, opening the wrapper with his teeth and good arm.

Ulquiorra turned his attention to the front door and windows. It was wide open, giving view to to the front of the store, where two men were having a fist fight.

"…is…is that Kurosaki?" Ulquiorra asked.

"Yes it seems he and Grimmjow couldn't help but get into a scuffle the moment they saw each other," Urahara said.

Ulquiorra tried to hide behind a shelf, but Urahara stopped him. "No need to be shy. Ichigo can't see you, remember? You're not in your gigai."

"Ah…the gigai…" Ulquiorra had nearly forgotten he had left it at Orihime's. He hoped the soul candy wasn't giving her too much trouble.

"It wandered here after you didn't come home," Urahara explained, as if reading Ulquiorra's mind. "I did some maintenance on it. You still abuse the poor thing, and I can't imagine what state you'd be in if Orihime wasn't there for you."

Ulquiorra scoffed and rolled his eyes. He turned his attention to the two fighting outside. They were looking worn out and ragged, Grimmjow being pushed back by Kurosaki. Kurosaki then went to punch a finishing blow, but Grimmjow dodged it and kneed the human boy in the stomach. Kurosaki doubled over in pain and coughed up his breakfast onto the ground.

"Okay!" Urahara said, rushing outside. "That's enough! You've fought, no need to give him organ damage."

"I'm not finished yet!" Kurosaki yelled.

"I've beaten you so give it up already!" Grimmjow growled.

"No!" Kurosaki cried. "Dammit why-" He hung his head in defeat.

To Ulquiorra's surprise, Grimmjow's face softened. "Hey…listen…" He extended a hand to Kurosaki to help him to his feet. Kurosaki appeared shocked, but took the hand anyways. "This wasn't a real fight! Ya don't got your powers or anything! It was just…loosening up the muscles. I don't care about beatin' you this weak. I wanna kick your ass when you've got your powers back."

Nel grinned. "Isn't Grimmy just the sweetest?"

"Woman! Will you shut up!?" Grimmjow snarled.

Ulquiorra raised his eyebrows. He didn't wish to encounter Grimmjow after witnessing such a display, so he decided to take his candy bar and make his way back to bed.

* * *

"I can sit up now. Teach me how to deal with this damn thing."

It was later that day when Urahara had delivered a proper meal to Ulquiorra. Urahara had just finished replacing Ulquiorra's antidote, and was cleaning up equipment.

"Your reiatsu is…questionable…" Urahara said carefully.

"I don't care. I have to get stronger," Ulquiorra insisted.

Urahara sat on the floor, his legs crossed, ans gestured for Ulquiorra to do the dame. The arrancar crawled out of bed, his legs wobbly from fatigue, carefully dragging the IV line with him.

"You place your sword across your lap and begin meditation," Urahara explained. "Focus yourself on the zanpakto. You already know its name so that's a huge step forwards."

Ulquiorra stared at the sword once he had placed it in his lap, then closed his eyes. Shutting off his mind proved to be a more difficult task than he originally thought. As an espada, his mind was always empty. Hell, his aspect of death was _emptiness_. But now all his head was filled with was anxiety. It was daunting trying to empty his mind, but the more he focused on his zanpakto and his own breaths, the more relaxed he became. It was a welcome calmness.

Ulquiorra opened his eyes, assuming he had fallen asleep. All around him was a gloomy darkness, like an overcast afternoon full of rain and sorrow. There was nothing to be seen along the horizon, the same thing for what seemed like miles.

He took a step forwards, and the sound of a gentle ripple of water came from beneath him. The entire ground seemed to be made of water, and Ulquiorra could walk across it. There was a reflection in the water, which finally settled once the water ripples calmed down, revealing Ulquiorra's face staring back at him.

Yet it _wasn't_ Ulquiorra. It was _Komori_.

Ulquiorra touched his chest in disbelief. He was clad in the black garb that was customary of Soul Reapers, and his hollow hole was gone.

"What…is this?" Ulquiorra muttered to himself. "Why do I-"

A splash of water. Ulquiorra's head snapped in the direction of the sound. He reached his hand reflexively for his sword, but there was none tucked in his cloth belt. A thin figure was approaching him from the distance with slow and labored steps. Ulquiorra's chest constricted and his limbs began to shake from fear.

The figure finally stopped, around ten feet away from Ulquiorra. It was pure white, wings sprouted from its back, and a long tail was swishing behind it. The only color it possessed seemed to be on its face, where two brilliantly green colored eyes were staring out from am otherwise featureless mask. It said nothing, only stared at the intruder of its home before it.

Ulquiorra recognized this being.

_It was his hollow._


	15. Sword

Ulquiorra stood frozen in place. His hollow wasn't ready to attack. It simply stood there, its green eyes gazing at its companion.

"What do you want from me?" Ulquiorra said.

The hollow did not answer. Ulquiorra knew that it was futile to expect one; his hollow was incapable of speech.

The hollow took a step closer. Ulquiorra stepped back to keep the distance between them, but this caused the hollow to stop and slouch down, as if… disappointed.

Ulquiorra's memories of being a hollow flooded into his mind, and he turned his head to look away from the creature in front of him. He hated looking at that thing. He hated being that thing. He could not speak, eat, or communicate with anyone. All he could do was stand on the outside, alone, watching others and being completely incapable of joining them.

There was a pain in Ulquiorra's chest. "What do you want from me?!" He repeated, this time his voice cracking with agony. It was unlike him to scream like this, but the emotions welled up inside him drove him to it.

The Hollow gave no response.

"I'm sick of looking at you!" Ulquiorra cried, lunging for the hollow.

The hollow responded only by snaking its tail around Ulquiorra's neck and lifting him off the ground. Ulquiorra could barely breath as the tail tightened. He clawed at it to try and escape, but it was to no avail. His breath was slowly being taken from him, as he slipped from consciousness…

"Ulquiorra!"

Urahara was crouched over Ulquiorra, shaking the arrancar fervently. Ulquiorra sat up, his body in a cold sweat. He felt pain _everywhere_.

"You aren't ready," Urahara sighed.

Ulquiorra had collapsed on the floor during his meditation session, apparently. "That's…lovely," he muttered.

"Lie down," Urahara ordered. "And if you attempt to enter your inner world again before you're better I'll take the sword from you, got it?"

Ulquiorra grumbled and crawled towards his bed.

* * *

"Oh I've been so worried!"

The moment Ulquiorra had returned to school after an agonizing week, Orihime threw herself on him and began crying. She didn't care who was watching them, or what rumors it would start.

"C-calm down," Ulquiorra said, but he made no effort to push her off of him.

Orihime sniffed and looked up at him. Her eyes were puffed red with tears. "How can I calm down when you almost died?!"

Orihime was too upset to notice the subtle change in Ulquiorra's expression at her words. She pulled away from him eventually and tried to compose herself. "I…I'm so glad you're okay," she said quietly, now embarrassed by some student onlookers who were entering class.

Ulquiorra slid his hand up Orihime's arm and pulled her close to him. His lips brushed her ear as he whispered "I won't die on you again…Orihime."

Orihime's heart leaped, and warmth spread from where he had nearly kissed her ear. Mumbling could be heard from the other side of the class. Orihime pulled her sweater over her head in shame. She always insisted she and Komori were just friends, but the lie was getting harder and harder to keep up.

Ulquiorra seemed more distant than usual at lunchtime. Orihime sat with her friends, feeling awkward around Ulquiorra's strangely sulky attitude. He still walked with her towards home, but even then on their walk back it was unusually quiet and sullen.

Rangiku and Toshiro weren't home yet (they often returned very late at night), so Orihime's apartment was awfully quiet and still. She turned on the lights to help bring some sort of life, but Ulquiorra's sulking presence dampened the mood.

"Are you okay?" Orihime finally asked after Ulquiorra had sat down in the living room and stared at the wall after evacuating the gigai.

"Yes," Ulquiorra replied, his eyes still focused on the wall.

"No you're not!" Orihime snapped, falling to her knees and grabbing Ulquiorra by the shoulders. She didn't lose her temper often but Ulquiorra was someone who could drive her absolutely nuts. "I know something's bothering you…and…when you hid away at Urahara's. That was to prevent me from healing you, right?"

"That much is obvious," Ulquiorra grumbled.

Orihime shrank back from him, her heart crashing. "I want to…help you."

"You…" Ulquiorra began to say, but he looked away from her.

Tears came to Orihime's eyes, but she swallowed the welling emotions. Why must he hurt himself so much? Was she really that much of a burden to him that he couldn't rely on her? The only thing she was really good at was healing, after all, but Ulquiorra had flat out rejected her help.

"If…if you don't want me to help you then…" Orihime took a deep breath. "You can forget about protecting me!"

"Absurd," Ulquiorra replied. He sighed and leaned towards Orihime, his voice lowered. "By staying safe you help me."

"But I don't…it doesn't matter if you're not," Orihime whimpered.

Ulquiorra grabbed both of Orihime's hands with his. Her heart beat faster as his touch, despite them having held hands countless times before. "If I die protecting you, then I would not have protected you at all. Do not dare compare me to that fool Kurosaki. There are things I am willing to do that he would never dream of for the sake of your protection. The physical suffering I endure is nothing in comparison to the despair I would feel if harm came to you. You are…" he hand his head, his breaths shaking. "...you are my world, Orihime. I cannot face existence any longer if you are not with me." His hands gripped tighter to Orihime's, and they began to shake. "This week apart from you was agony. I…"

Orihime let go of Ulquiorra's hands, then embraced him. He flinched under her touch, but then seemed to melt into her. His arms wrapped around her back as he held onto her, his chin resting on her shoulder. His cold, hard hollow mask pressed onto Orihime's cheek. She nearly poked her eye on his horn, but she didn't mind. Watching out for the little horn on his head just was an occupational hazard as Ulquiorra's…whatever it was.

"I won't go anywhere I promise," Orihime assured the distressed Ulquiorra.

Ulquiorra's green eyes searched Orihime's face for a few moments before he pecked her lips with his own. She was surprised for sure, to receive a kiss from him, and on her lips no less. Of course, this only served to remind her of the one time they had begun making out, to which the memory she turned a bright shade of crimson.

Ulquiorra did not attempt anything more, and instead stood up and headed for the kitchen. "I'm hungry," he said.

"Oh!" Orihime snapped herself from her trance. "I'll make us some dinner!" She said, scurrying towards the kitchen as well.

* * *

Ulquiorra had a sea of emotions tangled in his chest he had no idea how to even begin to process. Normally his logical solution to this was to just shove them aside, but ever since his unsettling encounter with his hollow or whatever it was, he had to forcibly allow emotions to run their course. His strongest, of course, were his feelings towards Orihime. But what exactly were they? He could at least figure out he was _fond_ of her, or attached to her in some fashion. Enough to rile up _jealousy_ when she spent her precious, beautiful time with anyone else. He wanted to shield her, like he was guarding the most precious treasure in the world.

He had to force himself back out into the living room to sleep. He had snuck into Orihime's bedroom to watch her sleep. The anxiety always loomed over him that something terrible was going to happen to her while he wasn't there. She had gone an entire week without his protection (what good was that now that he was weaker than their foes?!), and the agony had gnawed at his chest. His wounds had healed once Urahara had removed the poison, but the pain left behind from his humiliating defeat was still there.

Orihime was cheerful, as per usual, in the morning. Ulquiorra had gone into her room to gently wake her. Her eyes fluttered open and she gave him a happy smile, touching his cheek with her hand. This warm, fuzzy moment lingered with Ulquiorra all the way to school. He could hardly hear what Orihime was updating him about, he was in a place of pure bliss. He could let nothing take this feeling away from him…

"Kuroda!"

Ulquiorra's mood was immediately soured. "Kurosaki," he grumbled.

School had flown by for Ulquiorra, and he didn't even seem to mind the constant pestering by his fellow classmates asking him where he had been. He had grown incredibly patient in his time in the world of the living. But, Kurosaki was enough to end that patience for good.

"I wanna talk to you," Kurosaki demanded. He had his arm in a sling, which Ulquiorra assumed was and injury from his fight with Grimmjow.

"Fine, but make it quick," Ulquiorra sighed. "I want to go home. I'm weary of this place."

Orihime grabbed Ulquiorra's hand, to which he was grateful for.

Kurosaki led the group to a quieter place at the school grounds, away from listening ears and prying eyes. Ulquiorra immediately guessed what this confrontation was about, and reflexively squeezed Orihime's hand to brace himself.

"…your name isn't really Kuroda, is it?" Kurosaki said.

Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed.

"I get it now why you're so attached to her," Kurosaki said. "What was it? Orders? To spy on her or something? I'm not even gonna ask how the hell you're alive."

"Why should I-" a squeeze from Orihime's hand reminded Ulquiorra that it pained her to keep the truth from Kurosaki. He exhaled, and against his better judgement he decided to speak the truth. "I am here due to Kisuke Urahara, who I am loyal to."

"I thought you went nuts over protecting Lord Aizen or whatever," Kurosaki scoffed. "Listen I don't care how you're back or even why by stay the hell away from Orihime! I've said it before, it's really creepy! And now that I know you're an espada I-"

Orihime stepped in front of Ulquiorra.

"Stop it! Leave him alone. He's on our side now and he doesn't deserve you bullying him!"

Ulquiorra and Kurosaki were both speechless at this sudden display. Orihime generally refrained from being assertive unless she genuinely meant it.

"Orihime, it's not safe!" Kurosaki persisted. "You're always doing stupid stuff that gets you hurt! And this is probably the worst thing you could do!"

"Oh, be quiet Ichigo!" Orihime cried, her voice raising. "You…you always treat me like I'm made of glass or something! I know I'll never be as strong as you were or as strong as our friends but…I can take care of myself!"

Orihime began crying and ran away.

"Orihime…" Kurosaki said quietly, watching her go.

"You're lucky she deems you have some form of value or I would kill you," Ulquiorra snapped at Kurosaki before rushing after the crying girl.

Ulquiorra caught up to her quickly. She had begun walking towards home, tears falling in large droplets down her face. "Orihime…Orihime…" Ulquiorra chanted softly as he placed his arm around her shoulder.

Orihime said nothing. She was gripping onto her bookbag and staring off into space. Ulquiorra had to guide her to make sure she didn't run into anything on their walk back home. He wanted desperately to say something, but knew anything he said would just make the situation worse.

 _I've never seen her fight with Kurosaki,_ Ulquiorra thought. What were her feelings towards that boy? She seemed awfully attached to him. He even went as far as to fight an Espada for Orihime's safety. Of course, Ulquiorra never really intended to bring harm to Orihime, even when under Aizen's command. He had kept up this appearance to aggravate Kurosaki into a fight…but never once took into consideration Orihime's feelings. Now he would never dream of doing something like that. No matter how much he loathed Kurosaki, bringing harm to Orihime's friends would just make her cry.

"Your…your keys, Orihime," Ulquiorra said in a soft voice as they reached her door. The girl fumbled with her bag and retrieved her key ring, trying to place the key in its lock with a shaking hand. Ulquiorra steadied her hand with his and slowly opened the door.

Orihime kicked off her shoes and immediately headed for her bedroom, collapsing in her bed, her bag dropped to the livingroom floor. She then began sobbing uncontrollably into one of her many pillows.

Ulquiorra quietly picked up her things and put them in their proper place. He didn't know what to do exactly, other than silently do some chores while she cried. While he was washing their lunch dishes, he saw a note on the fridge written in Orihime's handwriting. "New shift starts tomorrow after school!"

 _Ah…that's right…_ Orihime had to apply for a job at the bakery they frequented. Ulquiorra had thought it would be a good idea for him to work alongside her, but his training and the arrancar threat was in the way of this. Perhaps one day he could do something to provide money for her.

Orihime finally stopped crying and made her way into the kitchen where Ulquiorra had just finished sweeping the floor and finishing up his quick cleaning.

"Who ever thought that an espada would be cleaning my kitchen," Orihime said with a sniff, her voice still shaking from her sobs.

"Who ever thought that an espada would be honored to clean your kitchen," Ulquiorra said with a smile. The smile he gave was small, but genuine. His feelings for Orihime to feel happy were so overwhelming, his body seemed to react without him having to think about it!

"Why, Ulqui?"

This question gave Ulquiorra pause. "What?"

"Why are you…taking care of me? And…protecting me."

"Because I want to," came Ulquiorra's honest reply. He felt the palms of his hands sweat for some reason. Was it because he had neglected to evacuate the gigai when they came home? No…this was from his unstable emotions.

"Yes but…why do you want to?" Orihime asked him. Her eyes were still red from tears.

"I…" Ulquiorra could not form words to express his feelings. He wished there was a way to _express_ these complicated feelings without speaking.

"Is it because of Urahara?" Orihime continued. "Is it…is it because you feel bad for what Aizen did to me? Is it because I'm just a burden on other people? That you feel sorry for me that I am so stupid I can't take care of myself?" Her voice began to raise towards the end of her questioning.

"No!" Ulquiorra replied immediately.

"Then why?" Orihime cried.

"Because I love you!"

Orihime gasped and stared, her mouth slightly ajar. Ulquiorra immediately clamped a hand over his mouth.

 _Why did I say that? Why? It just…slipped out!?_ Ulquiorra felt like time had stopped, and the room had fallen eerily quiet.

Orihime had a few silent tears fall down her face, to which she then sniffed and wiped her eyes with her sweater sleeve. "Oh…" she said as she visibly fought back a smile.

Ulquiorra relaxed, took a deep breath, and walked into the livingroom, guiding the emotional Orihime with him. He sat across from her and mustered up the courage to speak. "I…am new to this…" He hung his head in shame, unable to bring himself to look at Orihime. "I am not sure that Arrancar are capable of feeling love. But…I've done some semblance of research and…I believe that is how I feel about you." He felt his face burn in embarrassment.

Orihime was clearly blushing. "Oh…you…I…"

"I did not wish to burden you with such knowledge of my feelings," Ulquiorra said. "But it slipped out on accident."

Orihime clasped her fingers together and looked down at the floor. Her long orange hair fell in strands over her face. Ulquiorra couldn't help but brush aside her hair with the most gentle touch he could manage.

Orihime caught his hand in hers and held it against her cheek. She closed her eyes and sighed. "I have been so confused during this time being with you…you know…there was a lot for me to sort out. But I think…I think I know the answer now."

Ulquiorra gulped. Would he be able to handle her rejection? What would he do when she rejected his feelings? Would he be able to continue being her friend? Would he-

"I love you, Ulquiorra. I think…I think I always have."

* * *

_"Hopefully you do not wake up from this."_

This was the second time Kisuke had ventured into Ichigo's inner world. It was an empty, topsy turvy world, somewhat filling Kisuke with a sense of existential dread.

"Man…I'd hate to be you," Kisuke remarked as he perched on the side of one of the many floating buildings of this strange city.

Kisuke shifted his weight from one foot to the other. It had been a long while since he had worn the typical Soul Reaper uniform, complete with his zanpakto at his side. Benihime usually was in Kisuke's cane, so having her at his waist was an unusual feeling.

"Hello? Anybody home?" Kisuke called out into what felt like the void. "Come out or I'll start cutting stuff!"

Kisuke saw a flash of white. His heart leaped in terror as he spun around to see what it was. Upon seeing nothing, he sighed. "Man, do I hate being my own guinea pig…" he sighed.

"What's up, old timer?"

Kisuke snapped his head in the direction of the voice. This time, he really did see a figure standing before him. He looked just like Ichigo, yet was dressed in pure white. Everything about him was white, even his skin and hair, save for the black scalera of his eyes.

"Hey I know you, you're the one who freed me," said the figure.

"So…you're…" Kisuke's question trailed off. _How interesting! For the hollow to have taken this form…_

"I assume you're here because of Ichigo, huh?" the hollow asked.

Kisuke nodded. "I'm looking for Ichigo's source of power...for Zangestu."

The hollow looked Kisuke over for a second, crossed his arms, and bore his teeth in a wicked smile.


	16. Boyfriend

Under the ground is usually where the world's most evil liked to lurk, away from the sun's light. How much evil then would be that which hid from the blank, dark sky of Hueco Mundo? Lilera didn't know. She didn't care. The pain in her head pounded, and her breathing was ragged. Sometimes she coughed up blood for no reason, her lungs burning with a pain that would never subside.

This was a consequence of her transformation. She felt no better than a corpse, poison oozing its was through her body. Some of her veins showed as a deep, pulsing purple, reminding her she no longer was a normal arrancar.

The trade off for this was _immense_ power. The increase of her spiritual pressure was at least tenfold. She wasn't sure where or how this happened, but she wasn't one to complain. Hell, maybe she'd be able to fight Grimmjow or something now.

"Hes still _alive_?!"

Lilera heard Loly scream as she entered the room. She had made her way to the upper floor of the fourth espada's tower. This was Loly's preferred hub, as it was the closest to Halibel's as she could get to. "Not only that, one of our strongest battle ready arrancar were completely destroyed by just one of their captains?! Why didn't anyone tell me they assigned a captain to that stupid town?!"

Lilera winced at Loly's screaming. Ever since her…"transformation", her fear of Loly's wrath increased tenfold.

"Calm down, my lady, the strongest batch are nearly complete," came the voice of Lilera's nightmare-the ragged, chained creature that was responsible for the arrancar's horrendous transformations.

"That stupid Ulquiorra thinks he can just get away free with betraying our lord Aizen like that?" Loly continued ranting. "He has to pay for what he has done."

"My lady, please allow me to kill him," Lilera said, getting down on one knee.

"Even with your new form, you're no match for a captain," Loly scoffed. "No…I'm just going to have to concoct a new plan to put that traitor in his rightful place."

* * *

"…love?"

Ulquiorra murmured the word a few moments after Orihime's confession. When he had said the word in his accidental confession some moments prior, he had spoken without understanding its meaning. Yet…he could think of no other way to describe the intensity it brought him.

Orihime wrung her hands and could only stare at Ulquiorra's chest. Sweat poured down the back of his neck. The last time he felt an anxiety this intense it was moments before his first death.

"I…thought about it," Orihime finally continued. "I think what I…no, I know what I feel is love."

"I…know," was all Ulquiorra could manage.

"What do we do?" Orihime whispered.

"What do you mean by that question?" Ulquiorra asked. "You speak as if this is a problem."

"It's just that…" Orihime seemed to have an issue finding words. "I don't think Soul Society is going to be very happy about it."

"About what? They do not dictate my feelings the last time I checked," Ulquiorra scoffed.

"No, about a human having an espada for a boyfriend," Orihime said. The corners of her mouth turned into a smile. "Wow! My very own boyfriend!"

Ulquiorra was taken aback but Orihime's sudden mood change, and when he recovered from the shock he felt his face burn in embarrassment. "B-boyfriend?" Had he finally earned this coveted title?

"U-unless you don't want to be," Orihime blushed.

"Please! Allow me to…to…be your…boyfriend," Ulquiorra stammered.

Orihime suddenly hugged Ulquiorra. "Oh good! I was so worried you didn't feel that way about me! I just-"

The front door opened. Rangiku and Hitsugaya had returned from their outing. Orihime immediately let go of Ulquiorra and blushed, much to his disappointment.

"I hope we weren't interrupting something," Rangiku said with a wink.

"You're so crude," Hitsugaya groaned.

"No, and don't concern yourselves over it," Ulquiorra said, his voice cold. "You should get some sleep, Orihime. You have a busy day tomorrow."

"Y-yes!" Orihime agreed, and scampered off to her bedroom.

* * *

Ulquiorra couldn't push the events of last night from his mind. He couldn't sleep, which forced him to pace restlessly on the roof of the apartment complex. Hitsugaya was clearly bothered by this, and groggily appeared on the rooftop to give Ulquiorra a shouting. Under normal circumstances Ulquiorra would have pitched a fit, but this time he was in such a good mood he let it slide.

"Good morning, Orihime," Ulquiorra said the next morning, dressed and ready as Komori, as he stood in the kitchen preparing his own breakfast.

Orihime, her hair a disaster as per usual every time she woke up, looked through her tangled red mess and blinked. "You're smiling…"

Ulquiorra's face fell once he realized he had done so the moment he saw Orihime. "Sorry. I did not notice."

"No! No it's good!" Orihime insisted. "I like it when you smile. Sometimes you can't help it and that means I know you're truly happy at that moment."

 _Am I happy?_ Ulquiorra thought. _Is this what happiness feels like?_ It was true that ever since last night, he felt like a huge burden had been lifted from his chest. He shook the thought and said, "you should get dressed and eat, you have a busy day today."

"You know I never…" Orihime began to say.

"Never what?" Ulquiorra asked, his attention completely on her words.

"…I don't think I would have imagined that you of all people would be my first boyfriend," Orihime said shyly. "I-I don't mean that in a bad way I just…it's funny how things work out!"

"Very," Ulquiorra sighed. What a strange girl, always saying obvious things like this. He…loved that about her.

School was uneventful, as neither "Komori" nor Orihime announced their relationship status (especially out of a wariness of Kurosaki). Uryu and Tatsuki seemed suspicious, but this was not unusual behavior for them, so they were easily brushed off. Kurosaki seemed more sulky than usual, probably due to Orihime's outburst at him, which was understandable.

Ulquiorra began to worry a bit about how quiet things had been lately. Hitsugaya had reported that there had been little to no disturbance to Karakura town outside of the normal hollows. Ulquiorra often ignored Grimmjow and Nel, and the last time he was with Urahara he was deathly ill, so he had next to no reports on the state of Hueco Mundo. Perhaps Grimmjow was actually doing his job? Ridiculous…

The pair headed home quickly after school, for Orihime to change into her new uniform, and Ulquiorra to evacuate his gigai. When he stopped to look at himself in the mirror after resuming his identity of an espada, he felt a twinge of disappointment. Did he…wish he was human? _Useless thoughts…_ Ulquiorra brushed them aside. _You had your time as a human, didn't you?_

But did he really? Ulquiorra could never remember being human. Even after his mysterious rebirth, no memory of his past life ever returned to him. He used to not care, but now because of Orihime it bothered him from time to time.

"Ulquiorra? We're going to be late!" called Orihime.

"Oh! Right, my apologies," Ulquiorra replied, tearing himself away from the mirror.

Orihime saw Ulquiorra and smiled. "You're actually wearing clothes as an arrancar this time!"

This remark was true. Ulquiorra, right before being released from Urahara, requested some better clothing than a thin yukata for his Arrancar form. Ulquiorra had requested clothing he could fight in, but desired to neither wear Aizen's uniform for him or the black Soul Reaper clothing. Instead, Urahara managed to find a middle ground between the two, complete with white hakama and a more form-fitting top. "I suppose I developed a form of self respect," Ulquiorra remarked. "Rather than just wearing what I was told. Hm. It is nice having preferences."

Orihime beamed at him and walked out the door. "Let's go, my Knight!"

"Knight?" Ulquiorra asked.

"Hmm," Orihime replied. "A knight protects the Princess, right?"

Ulquiorra blushed. "I see."

Ulquiorra spent the walk to Orihime's work simply glancing at her whenever it seemed she wouldn't notice. While his feelings had been put recently to words, there still were unanswered questions that gave him anxiety in the pit of his stomach. Who was he, really? Why was he so different from the other arrancar? And the worst question of all…how the _hell_ was he alive? He distracted himself by gazing at Orihime's beauty. Her long hair was pulled back in a bun, which was an unusual hairstyle for her, but it gave her a sense of maturity. She still wore her hairpins, but she looked much more like a woman than her usual girlish appearance. Ulquiorra had no idea how old he was in comparison to her, but only recently did he really feel alive.

Ulquiorra held back the urge to open the door for Orihime, realizing he was invisible to everyone else and a door opening by itself would only serve as an alarm to those around them. He muttered an apology to Orihime, mostly out of his own hurt pride, and followed her into the building. He stayed inside long enough to make sure she was settled, then he went outside to patrol.

Did he eat before he came? He wondered. His stomach growled from the delicious smell coming from the bakery ovens. No, he was too preoccupied with Orihime getting prepared out of the door he didn't even eat a snack when she did.

"Of course I forgot something so vital," he groaned to himself, taking a seat on the roof. He pulled his sheathed sword from his belt and looked at it. "Well, Mercialago, I don't blame you for leaving someone like me behind."

Time passed. Ulquiorra wished he was wearing a watch when in his arrancar form so he could at least tell what time it was. It had to have been hours. He ended up going through several training rounds just out of sheer boredom. He could sometimes watch Orihime through the window, but he didn't want to overwhelm her, so he tried not to watch her like she was some animal in a cage. He already kept her locked away once. He wasn't going to do it again, nor ever make her feel that way.

"Not even a hollow?" Ulquiorra said to his sword. He didn't think it would help, but speaking to his sword like it was a person gave him a bit of hope they were bonding at least to some degree.

It _was_ strange. Due to the strong amounts of spirit energy in Karakura town, there usually always was hollows or at least wholes around. Yet, there was nothing but silence. This made Ulquiorra uneasy. The arrancar wouldn't have just _quit_. Perhaps they pulled back because they were planning something _big_. That wasn't an ideal situation in Ulquiorra's mind, and he decided that after work he would like to stop in with Urahara and the other Arrancar to speak with them.

"Whew! What a long day!" Orihime said at long last. She had a large basket of bread in her arms as she walked out the door.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" Ulquiorra asked, floating down from the roof. He looked at the basket of bread hungrily; it was nearly nine o'clock at night, and he hadn't eaten since lunch. "As much as one can enjoy work, anyways."

Orihime handed a roll of bread to Ulquiorra. "Here! I remembered you didn't eat a snack before we came but I just was so busy I couldn't bring you anything! I'm really sorry I-"

Ulquiorra pecked her forehead, silencing the girl. "It's fine. What is this? And why do you have so much bread?" He examined the bread roll he was handed.

"Oh thats seaweed bread!" Orihime explained. "These are all leftover unsold bread. They'd otherwise get thrown away but they're perfectly good so I am taking them home!"

Ulquiorra began eating the bread, the taste unusual but not unpleasant to his taste buds. In fact he rather liked it. Perhaps jam would have been good, but he'd have to try condiment combinations on the other bread later.

"No hollows today," Ulquiorra reported casually. "And…if you don't mind could we stop by Urahara's?"

Orihime agreed. "We can bring them bread!" She said with enthusiasm.

Grimmjow was sweeping the store, and Nel was counting the money in the register. Urahara was sitting on the floor in front of a magazine rack flipping through them. He was so engrossed in a perfume add he didn't notice Ulquiorra come in.

"Ah! Oh, it's you," Urahara smiled sleepily. "We had a slow day today…" he yawned. "Makes ya sleepy."

"I need to speak with you and the other arrancar," Ulquiorra said.

Urahara sighed and stood up, stretching his arms as his bones cracked from him being sedentary. "All right, arrancar crew follow me. Ah…Orihime…" Urahara continued, noticing the girl holding the basket of bread. "Go find Tessai will you? I'm sure he'll get you some tea or something."

Ulquiorra felt some anxiety letting Orihime from his sight, but his discussion with the others was important. "There were no arrancar attacks, nor even hollows. I've noticed a significant lack of them. I don't even sense their presence. I believe the arrancar are planning-"

"Yeah we _know_ ," said Grimmjow. "That's what Halibel keeps sayin'. You're always gettin' worked up lately."

"They're probably planning an attack on the living world in a larger scale," Nel said. "But we can't figure out why. It has something to do with Aizen."

"So…in all the work you've done in Hueco Mundo neither of you have learned anything?" Ulquiorra said, trying to suppress the rage inside him. He was furious with the situation. How much longer must they be kept in the dark on how to ensure Orihime's safety?

"Now wait just a minute you-" Grimmjow began to say. Nel pushed him back and prevented him from attacking Ulquiorra.

"Ulquiorra we're aware of the situation and sre doing everything in our power to help it, you know this. We just have to be patient," Urahara said. "Now…I am glad you are here. There's something I wanted to talk to you about. _Alone_."

Nel took the hint and dragged Grimmjow away.

Urahara looked uneasy, an expression Ulquiorra didn't seem to ever recall having seen on him before. It startled the arrancar, making his chest pound with more anxiety.

"I uh…man where do I start?" Urahara said as he rifled through some drawers in his desk. He pulled out a black cardboard box made for holding paperwork and placed it on the top of his desk. "So I went to the Soul Society and to the place they found you…and I found some things."

Ulquiorra looked at the box like it was going to leap up and attack him. "…what things?" He asked.

Urahara opened the box and pulled out a file. He placed the file in front of Ulquiorra and gestured to it.

Ulquiorra looked at the picture on the front page of the file and felt a lump form in the back of his throat.

"It's about _you_."


	17. Black and White

"About…me?"

Ulquiorra didn't dare touch the papers in front of him. Deep down inside something was screaming at him not to touch them, as their contents would bring him nothing but pain.

"Yes I…didn't want to tell you before but," Urahara looked guilty. "I can't avoid it any longer. Look, Ulquiorra no matter what--"

"What did you tell him?!"

A familiar voice rang through Urahara's work room. A black cat zoomed towards the desk, leaped on top of the papers, and stood between Ulquiorra and Urahara. "Are you mad?! What did you say to him?! Don't you have any shred of decency for other people's feelings?!"

"Now now Yoruichi, I haven't said anything yet," Urahara said, holding his hands up. "But Ulquiorra is a big boy. I think he can handle it."

Yoruichi looked behind him at Ulquiorra with a worried expression, seemed to think for a moment, and got off the papers. "I guess it is time for you to know."

"Will it hurt me if I know what is in here?" Ulquiorra asked.

"Not your body, but your heart," Yoruichi said.

"Hurt…my heart?" Hearts can be hurt? Oh yes…he knew the pain of the heart quite well. Every time he was separated from Orihime his heart hurt, that must have been it. "Will it hurt Orihime's heart?" This question was the most important.

"…I don't think so, she doesn't seem the type to care about this sort of thing," Urahara stated. "I think she will be able to handle it in my opinion."

"Are you going to tell me or not?" Ulquiorra said, slamming his hand onto the desk as he finished speaking.

Urahara and Yoruichi jumped. Their faces wore a startled expression, not expecting Ulquiorra's more expressive side to show. Urahara exhaled slowly. "You know it's not that big of a deal, really. At least not in my opinion anyways if that counts."

Ulquiorra grabbed the file off of the desk and opened it, diving into a greater unknown than he had ever known before.

* * *

  
Aizen was not just a self-proclaimed genius. It was a simple _fact_ that he was the most intelligent, most powerful being in the soul society. Of course, no one else could fully appreciate this or give Aizen any sense of understanding. The world was so…complicated, full of wonders no one could even come close to appreciating. It was full of people like mindless goldfish, swimming around in their little bowls unable to see the complex beauty of it all.

Of course it is only natural that a being as intelligent as Aizen himself would be the one to rule the world. To become a god, however, he would have to take many steps to get there. So he began experimenting on hollows, soul reapers, and even the Quincy.

Aizen wished to do something only in the domain of gods: create life. Kisuke Urahara, the only other being who could somewhat match Aizen's own intellect, had dabbled in this area of experimentation. Aizen would need an army, so perhaps he could create a hollow to his own personal liking. Perhaps even creating something above the realm of gods.

His experiments to create this perfect hollow ended in many failures. He stole energy, copied souls, and even experimented on the human souls in the outer districts of the Soul Society. 

Finally, after many failed attempts, Aizen had created his prototype: a pure white hollow, created solely for the purpose of servitude to Aizen. To fully train this hollow for its purpose, Aizen found the most ancient, deepest, and devoid of light pit in Hueco Mundo and cast the hollow into it. The hollow was left to its own devices, without a mouth to feed, so it could only watch in despair as it could never do anything except live in isolation away from its peers.

Aizen then created a second hollow, a black hollow made from the power of over a dozen Soul Reaper captains. Aizen allowed this hollow to possess someone worthy of its power, watching over them and their growth over the span of their life.

* * *

  
"…this is…" 

Ulquiorra looked over the notes again and again to make sure he was reading it correctly. "I'm…I was never…"

"You never were human," Urahara said. "Unlike all of the other arrancar and Vasto Lordes, you were never alive."

Ulquiorra blinked. "Somehow I am not surprised," he said. He felt a lump rising in the back of his throat and his eyes began to burn. _Why do I feel so ill? It is just the truth…_

"You were the prototype experiment for Aizen's most terrible creation," Yoruichi explained, placing a paw on the file which Ulquiorra had set back down. "An artificial hollow called White."

 _White?_ "Urahara, do you have a pen?" Ulquiorra grabbed a blank sheet of paper and begun to write something he had discovered at school. When he was finished, he held up the paper for the other two to see. "When you write the name of my sword, in Spanish it reads as the word bat, but written in kanji it reads 'great black winged demon'."

Urahara rubbed his chin and looked at the name Ulquiorra had written down. "Huh…Aizen sure likes ironic names."

"Where is White now?" Ulquiorra asked, although for some reason he felt he knew the answer.

"You've met him," Urahara said. "I believe he killed you."

Ulquiorra fell silent for a minute, allowing some of the pieces to fall together. "Does this mean…Ichigo is my brother?" The first thing that came to mind regarding connected individuals was Orihime and her brother Sora. Ulquiorra didn't mean to blurt out this question, but he was losing more control over himself as the conversation progressed.

"White _is_ technically your brother of sorts," Urahara corrected him. "But since White has fully fused to Ichigo's zanpakto, then yes, I suppose it does make Ichigo your brother."

"I killed him once," Ulquiorra said bluntly.

"Yeah that's not something brothers should do I don't think." Urahara stretched his arms as he continued to speak. "But! You're learning."

Yoruichi sighed. "Now that you know, Kisuke needs something of you that only you could help with."

Ulquiorra, curious as to what that might be, listened closely. 

"Think you can scare someone a bit for me?" Urahara said with an impish smile. "I've got a pretty stubborn guy I'm working with."

* * *

"Normally I do not appear this way in my inner world," Ulquiorra remarked, looking over his appearance in the reflection of one of Ichigo's inner world's many glass buildings. He looked like his normal arrancar self, which was beginning to look a little alien, if he was being completely honest. _Disgusting. I've adjusted too much to being human._

"It's probably because in your inner world, the only sane part of you is the soul reaper half," Urahara explained. "I dont have to explain to you that hollows are instinctual creatures without a need for a soul reaper's inner world of communication."

Ulquiorra sighed. "I still can't release my sword. Will it be all right?"

"I'm sure it will be fine. I'm here with you if anything goes wrong," Urahara said. He started tapping on the glass with his cane. "Hello! Is anyone there? I've an urgent need to speak with you!"

Ulquiorra sensed familiar reiatsu. He felt his muscles tense. _Fear…this is fear_.

The infamous White appeared before them. He had a sour expression on his face. "How many times have I told you! I'm not--" He froze, his eyes widening at the sight of Ulquiorra.

Ulquiorra took this cue and drew his sword, one hand still in his pocket. Despite his chest thumping wildly with fear, he knew he had to keep up the façade in order for this plan to work. He lunged at White, and just barely did White manage to block the blow with his own sword.

"Th-the hell?! Aren't you dead?!" White screamed.

"Of course, I'm a Hollow aren't I?" Ulquiorra said, parrying another blow. His fear began to subside a bit, as White's reiatsu seemed a lot weaker from the first time they met.

"I turned you to dust!" White shouted. "Dust shouldn't be talking!"

Ulquiorra smirked. "I have a bit of a grudge against you for killing me."

"So what? You think I care?" White sneered.

"…and Kurosaki," Ulquiorra added. White's sword slipped a bit with this added dialogue, which gave Ulquiorra an opening to kick White in the stomach.

White reeled back. His face couldn't have been more pale than it was, but Ulquiorra had seen enough fear to know when it had struck someone. _Just keep this up…just a little longer._

Ulquiorra removed his hand from his pocket. Keeping his straight-faced and cool composure took all of his willpower. Placing his second hand on his sword, he took a step back and lifted the blade, readying a strike. 

White seemed to recall what happened the last time Ulquiorra pulled his second hand out of his pocket. "Ban…kai!" He shouted, pointing his oversized sword in front of him.

Ulquiorra gulped, but to his relief it was as Kisuke said: Ichigo currently had little to no power. The amount of reiatsu needed to power a bankai was tremendous, and something Ichigo currently did not posess.

"Give up now," Ulquiorra taunted. He used a sonido to flash behind White and kick him to the ground. He stepped on White's face, similar to what the hollow had done to him moments before his own death.

White squirmed, but could do nothing. "H-hey now…this isn't funny I was just playing around…"

Ulquiorra dug his heel into White's skull. This feeling…it was a euphoria of some kind. Ulquiorra had never experienced this before, a new emotion. He was deeply satisfied to be in control, to pay back White for what he did to him (and scaring Orihime, of course). 

Ulquiorra leaned forwards, his voice quiet and dark. "Shall I fire a cero point blank? Or should I do things more slowly…" He lifted his sword and stabbed it into White's left arm. He could have cut it off, but pinning the hollow in agonizing pain was so much more satisfying.

White screeched an unholy sound that gave Ulquiorra chills. It was the same horrible screeching that he had heard moments before his death.

"I'm going to kill you," Ulquiorra said. "Ichigo too."

At the sound of Ichigo's name, White screamed again and writhed. Ulquiorra kneeled down onto White's back, pressing his knee up against the hollow's spine. He knew White was in agonizing pain, and his screams kept growing louder.

"Stop!"

Ulquiorra looked up as a flash of black appeared from one of the buildings. It was a boy, perhaps not older than Ichigo himself, wearing tattered black robes that matched his messy dark hair. He lunged for Ulquiorra with an outstretched hand. The arrancar yanked his sword out of White's arm in an attempt to block, but before he could he heard Urahara's voice.

"Hey now! Let's all calm down!" Urahara said, approaching the figure.

The boy stopped his attack on Ulquiorra and turned to Urahara. "…what are you doing here?" The boy demanded.

"I'm here to help you," Urahara said. "You're just really hard to find. You know…come to think of it…you can't bankai but you're in that form?"

The boy relaxed a bit. "Since Ichigo's loss of his soul reaper powers, I've gained most of what power he has left. It has caused an imbalance in Ichigo. I will return to my other state if that…thing is called upon again." He looked disgusted at the White on the ground, who was gripping onto his wounded arm.

"…you interested in restoring Ichigo's powers?" Urahara asked.

The boy sighed. "Originally I was glad that Ichigo had lost his powers. He no longer was targeted by hollows or was in danger. But because our connection is severed, I cannot see the outside world. I do not hear his voice. I cannot feel him, or know if he is all right. I…" Tears formed in the boy's eyes. "Please help me. Help us. We miss him." He fell weakly to his knees, his emotions unbearable.

Ulquiorra watched this display, then looked down at his own sword. Did Mercialago feel the same way about him that Ichigo's zanpakto felt about his wielder? 

* * *

  
"I did what you asked, but I don't feel satisfied."

Ulquiorra was staring at the wall at Urahara's shop. Ultimately, his job was to intimidate White to lure out Tensa, Ichigo's other half of his powers (and the rational thinker). But since he felt that strange sense of revenge, he was confused.

He was confused about a lot of things. About his origins, about the fact that screaming creature (and by extension Ichigo) was technically his brother, and how now he probably had been letting down Mercialago for all those years. All his power…came from despair. Was it Ulquiorra's despair, or was it because his zanpakto was crying out to him in pain?

"Revenge is hardly satisfying," Urahara said distracted, as he was looking over a few components for his next build. Ulquiorra had been sitting in Urahara's workroom after the incident with Ichigo, late into the hours of the night.

Orihime had fallen asleep in Nel's room. She had been told that Ulquiorra was busy working with Urahara and that it was safer for her to stay there for the night. She was worried about Ulquiorra's health; "did he have dinner? Is he sleeping? He's always all over the place."

"Urahara," Ulquiorra said after a few minutes of silence. 

"Hm?" Came Urahara's response.

"I wish I was human."

Urahara put down the gadget he was tinkering with, and a long sigh escaped his lips. He seemed to think for a moment, debating the right words to say. "Well…you're doing a lot better than some humans out there. You've got friends, a girlfriend who's clearly in love with you, _and_ you have cool powers. Not a lot of guys can boast all three of those things, you know."

Ulquiorra sighed. "How do I know if anything I feel is real? If…if I never was a human soul to begin with. How do I know if…if I love…her…" The last words choked in the middle of his throat. What was this overwhelming sensation?

Urahara strode across the room and kneeled down next to the curled up Ulquiorra. "Everything you're feeling is valid. You're alive. None of us, be it human, soul reaper, don't really know how the 'right' way to feel is. The fact you're even questioning this means there's life in you somewhere and that should be validation enough."

Ulquiorra pondered these words for a moment, then stood up and left the room. He was on his way to Grimmjow's room to sleep (if the man was even *in* his room. He never slept much, and spent countless hours of the night training), when he encountered Orihime. 

"Oh!" came Orihime's voice. She was dressed in a loose Tshirt and a pair of shorts, presumably belonging to Nel. "I didn't know you were up."

Ulquiorra wordlessly approached her and placed both of his hands on her upper arms, trialing them towards her shoulders. He wanted to rest his forehead on hers, but knew his hollow mask would probably poke her if he did. _Curse this body_ …

"Ulqui? Are you okay?" Orihime whispered softly. "Can you not sleep either?"

Ulquiorra slid his hands to cup Orihime's face and pulled her close to him in a kiss. He needed to feel her close to him. She was something warm, something real. He felt so out of touch with reality, but Orihime made him feel like he existed--like he had the right to.

After what felt like an eternity, they gently broke away. "Orihime," said Ulquiorra softly. "How can you love me even though I'm not human?"

"We've been over this, silly," Orihime smiled, lacing her hand through his fingers as she always did. "It doesn't matter if you're human or not. I love you for your heart."

He already knew her answer. Hearing her voice confirm it was like pure bliss. He closed his eyes and sighed deeply. "I love you," he said. "With…with all of my heart."


End file.
